War of Smoke
by MrsSpookyLiz
Summary: The Cigarette smoking man is out to get Mulder and Scully, and won't stop at anything this time. Mulder is accused of murder and is arrested, and it doesnt stop there. Can the agents prove that he's a traitor? MSR shipper moments and action! COMPLETE.
1. One

X4 A War of Smoke

Part One 

The old man took one last puff of his cigarette and then put it out slowly in the ashtray sitting next to him. He then put his hand in his pocket and brought out another cigarette, lit it and put it into his mouth.

The room was quiet and dark and he sat on the sofa on his own quietly thinking, enjoying his cigarette. He had been sitting there for hours on his own. He looked at a photograph that brought tears to his old eyes. He saw a young boy and a younger girl. He smiled and then turned towards a pile of paperwork lying on his desk. One title read, 'X-File No.23'

Suddenly he heard footsteps outside of his door. He waited for the knock but there wasn't one. He sighed then went back to his cigarette.

"Get up."

The smoking man jumped and his eyes opened wide. But when he saw who it was he settled again calmly. With his back to the man who was behind him he took another puff from his cigarette.

"GET UP OLD MAN!" The voice said with emotion and anger. The smoking man slowly put out his cigarette and then stood up keeping his eyes ahead of him. He faced away from the man behind him.

"Why are you so angry?" He said calmly.

"SHUT UP! Turn around and face me." The voice said with more anger than before. The smoking man sighed then started to turn around slowly. He faced the man and smiled a little. The man was pointing a gun at him. He could see that he was upset.

"Fox Mulder." The smoking man said. "What a nice surprise, what are you doing?"

"I want to know where you've put my property." Mulder said. He was gaining great anger in his voice. He breathed heavily. The smoking man could sense his anger.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't give me that bullshit! Where are the X-Files?" Mulder said. The smoking man smiled again.

"You won't need them anymore." He said. "The X-Files are going to close."

Scully sat on her sofa staring at her computer on the coffee table. She couldn't believe that the information had been taken. She stared in disbelief. All the work that they had done, three X-Files were missing from her computer and worst of all, one was the X-File on Mulder's sister, Samantha. She remembered the conversation she'd had with Mulder and remembered in sadness how upset and angry he had been. She wondered where he was, she had tried to tell him not to go but he hadn't listened to her. He had gone off to find the smoking man and he was probably going to kill him. She sighed and shook her head. Her red hair shone in the dim light. She moved her hands to her head and hung it with worry feeling her heart race for her friend.

Mulder kept his gun steady but he could feel his body shaking with pure anger. He was ready to shoot and he was going to if he didn't get the files back.

"The X-Files are going to close." He heard the smoking man say. Mulder stared in disbelief at the man for a moment then felt like he had been crushed.

"What?" Mulder said with sadness.

"You weren't making any success Fox. There is no point to keep it going." The smoking man said. Mulder sighed.

"No, no this has happened before and they've been reopened. You're so full of shit.. you just want them closed so that Scully and I don't find anymore evidence against you." Mulder shouted.

"Believe what you want, but they're going to be closing tomorrow. You'd better start packing Mulder." He said. Mulder couldn't believe it. He moved his eyes towards the table and saw paperwork on there. He tried to read the writing.

"What's that paperwork?" He asked. The smoking man stopped and looked over to the table.

"It's nothing of importance." He said.

"So they're the X-Files?" Mulder said. The smoking man sighed.

"Leave Fox." He said.

"No. Give me the files. If I don't need them, nobody does. Give them to me."

"No."

"I'll shoot." Mulder said confidently. He stared at the smoking man and frowned.

"Good bye Fox." The smoking man said. Mulder didn't move.

The smoking man put a hand behind his back and reached underneath his jacket and brought out his gun slowly. Mulder hadn't noticed. The smoking man quickly moved and brought out the gun and pointing it towards Mulder shot him in the leg.

Mulder cried out in pain. He shot his gun madly and it hit the light bulb. The whole room plunged into darkness. Mulder fell to the floor and cried out in pain. "STOP! DON'T LEAVE YOU BASTARD!" But the smoking man was already out of the door. Mulder sighed and felt pain surge up his leg. He cried out desperately.

Scully ran into the building, she had decided that she wasn't going to let Mulder go on his own to see the smoking man. She was going to go with him and help him. She cursed herself for not going in the first place. Scully made her way to the foyer and ran up the stairs on her right. She looked up when she heard footsteps and gasped as she saw the smoking man himself running towards her. Scully stopped on the stairs and tried to get her gun but it was stuck in its hold. Scully stood in the way of him and he passed her by but she quickly put her leg out to trip him and sent him falling down the stairs. She watched him roll to the bottom and stared as he moved slowly to get up. A woman rushed out of the reception and went to him. She looked up at Scully on the steps and frowned at her. Mulder's cries filled the corridor at the top of the stairs.

Scully turned her head towards them and her eyes opened wide with shock. She ran up the stairs quickly and made her way to the open apartment door and ran inside. The lights were off but a beam of light was shining in through the door from the corridor. Scully opened the door wider and saw Mulder lying on the floor holding his bleeding leg. Scully gasped.

"Mulder!" She said loudly. Mulder turned towards her.

"Scully? Scully.. Scully help me." He said weakly. Scully moved towards him and sat next to him.

"Mulder. It's ok just don't move. Don't move." She said softly and put a hand on his head. She gently stroked it and tried to calm him down. "Squeeze my hand." She said. She put his hand in hers and felt pressure on it from him. Scully looked at his leg and saw blood coming out quickly onto the floor spreading all over his jeans.

"The files.. they're on the table. Scully.. the files." Mulder said weakly and then put his head against the wall and took one painful breath. Scully turned her head towards the table and squinted in the darkness, she couldn't see any files.

"Ok, we'll get them later." She said trying to calm him down. Her heart sunk with despair and she filled with rage.

"That son of a bitch shot me." He said. Scully nodded.

"I know Mulder, just lay still." She said. Scully reached for her phone with her free hand and dialled 911. Mulder breathed heavily and groaned in pain. Scully felt panic fill her insides. "It's ok. It's ok.." She said softly, trying to reassure herself as well as Mulder.

The smoking man pushed the worried woman away with a grunt. She moved away from him.

"Sir, I'm only trying to help you. No.. no don't get up.." She said. He got to his feet slowly then walked toward the exit of the building with rage. Behind him someone started to come down the stairs and he heard Scully's voice pierce loudly.

"GO UPSTAIRS MAM! GET OUT OF THE WAY! FBI!" Scully shouted. The woman looked at her in shock then to the man running out of the door. She nodded slowly then started upstairs. "There's a man upstairs who needs help, sit with him. I'll be back soon." Scully said breathlessly to the woman. Scully ran to the foot of the stairs and into the dark night.

She scanned the large car park for signs of the smoking man. Her breath breathed out in clouds in the freezing air. She held her gun steady and felt her body start to shiver with cold. Her head turned. Suddenly from one dark side of the park she heard fast footsteps and turned towards them. Her legs started to run fast towards the sound and she saw a bush rustle. Someone was running away from her. Scully reached the bushes and ran through them causing them to sway again. She reached the other side but was suddenly pulled backwards into the bushes with a great force. Scully cried out and felt a cold hand gripping onto her coat. Then another hand grabbed her hair painfully. She dropped her gun.

"OW!" Scully cried out. She fought furiously against the man.

"Dana.. Dana.." He was saying with frustration. He bent down and picked up her gun and put it in his pocket. Scully pushed and pulled to get out of his grasp. She felt her hair pull more and more tight and felt tears sting her eyes.

"Let me go!" She screamed.

"Why aren't you with Mulder?" He said gruffly. Scully suddenly stopped by the sound of her partner's name. Her heart skipped a beat. "I thought you would be by his side. Don't you care for him Dana?" He said. Scully felt anger burn inside her.

"You know I had to find you, you're the criminal and I'm the law. Now get off me."

"You see Dana, that's why you're wrong because I'm part of the government too.. that's why you can never stop me." He said in his calm, unnatural tone. Scully breathed heavily and pulled away from him again. He pulled her back.

"Let me go. Get off me right now." She said.

"Dana.."

"It's SCULLY!" She shouted then with all her strength she kicked him hard in the leg. He let go and she moved forwards then spun around quickly.

"Argg.." He said holding his leg.

"GIVE ME THE GUN AND THE FILES!" She screamed. The smoking man breathed heavily and fell to his knees. He was gasping for air, he held his hand to his neck. Scully looked at him then frowned in suspicion, what was happening?

"I.. I can't breathe." He said. Scully shifted uneasily on her feet and felt her doctor instincts come upon her.

"Give me the files!" She said trying to push away the feelings of wanting to help. The smoking man fell onto his chest and was now facing the ground. Scully fought against the desire to help him, but she knew if he got worse she would have to. She moved towards him and pinned him on the floor. She reached inside his pocket and brought out his gun. She aimed is at his head.

"Get up!" She said. "GET UP!"

"I.. I can't." He said breathlessly. He tried to get to his knees and coughed loudly.

"May be this will persuade you to give up smoking." She said. The smoking man looked up at her sadly then stood up slowly. He panted for air.

"Do you know how long I have been following you two.. I can always see you, all the time." He said between breaths. Scully frowned at him.

"Do I care?" She said.

"You'll never prove what you want to prove." The smoking man said. Scully stared at him with anger and aimed the gun at his head with more accuracy. She heard sirens coming from the street behind her. She turned and looked at where the sound was coming from then turned back to the man. But he was gone. Scully looked around her for him but he had vanished. He had got away, and Scully wanted to talk to him. 'Dammit Dana.' She said under her breath, annoyed at herself.

She took one last deep breath then slowly made her way towards the ambulance that was parked outside the building picking up her gun from underneath the bush on the way. She tried to push her fury away.

Two days later 

Mulder lay in the hospital bed asleep. Only two days after the accident and Mulder was getting a lot better. Scully opened the door after seeing he had fallen asleep and moved out of the room into the corridor. She bumped into Assistant Director Skinner. Scully blushed and smiled as she looked up at him.

"Sorry Sir, I didn't see you there." She said.

"How is Agent Mulder?" He asked with a serious expression on his face.

"He's getting better." Scully said. She moved away from the door and sat down on a chair in the corridor.

"You need to come into work Dana, we've got things to discuss." He said. Scully nodded.

"I know, I came in yesterday but you weren't around. Shall we go now?"

"No, come in tomorrow. There are some serious things we have to discuss Scully." He said.

"Sir those allegations are all true I swear to you. We even have a witness who saw what happened. It's the smoking man, he's behind all of this.."

"Dana, I can't say I don't believe you. We'll speak tomorrow." He said then turned and walked away down the corridor. Scully looked after him and stood up trying to call him back. She opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. She sighed and sat back down in the chair. This was going to be hard to prove by herself.

Part 2 

The sun tried to make its way out of the clouds but didn't succeed. They were too thick. Mulder got out of the car with Scully's help and she helped him into his apartment building with one arm over his shoulders. He limped heavily but Scully talked to him happily and tried to cheer him up.

"You know I recorded all the baseball matches for you while you were in hospital Mulder." She said as they walked across the open car park. She felt Mulder shiver.

"Thanks Scully." He said. Scully stopped then made Mulder sit on the ground. 'Er.. Scully? What are you…'

"Just wait here a second." She said. They were only a few metres away from the car. She heard thunder rumble in the distance and she looked up to see the sun disappear behind heavy rain clouds. Scully went back to the car and picked up her long coat. She went back to Mulder and locked the car then put his arms into it.

"Come on Mulder this will keep you warm." She said. Scully laughed when she realised that he had got his arm stuck in her coat.

"Scully… this isn't big enough." He said with a small smile. Scully blushed and pulled it off him.

"Sorry. I should have known that!" She said. She put it around his shoulders then helped him up again. They walked slowly to the entrance of the building.

"God, this is really hard work." Mulder said quietly. Scully put an arm around his waist and squeezed it.

"Come on, there's not much further to go now. We need to get you into your apartment." She said. A huge gust of wind blew them to one side. Scully held onto Mulder with all her strength. He did the same to her.

"Damn weather." He murmured.

"Come on Mulder." She said with a smile. They reached the door then Scully closed it behind them and the warm air hit them fast. Scully sighed with relief. The receptionist gave them a small smile as they walked past her. Scully pressed the button for the lift and they stood waiting for it to come down.

"Excuse me, Fox." The receptionist said. They both turned their heads. "I hope you're better now. We've been missing you here in the building." She said with a friendly smile. Scully felt herself smile. Mulder nodded.

"Thanks." He said. The lift door opened and Scully helped Mulder in. She pressed the button and the door closed.

"I can't wait to get on my sofa." Mulder said. Scully let out a small laugh.

"You'll be there soon. I think you'd better sleep in your bed tonight though Mulder." Scully said. Mulder looked at her objectively but then realised he wasn't going to make any difference; she was a doctor after all.

The lift door opened and they made their way slowly across the corridor. Scully took out her own key and unlocked the door. As the door opened Mulder stared for a moment at his home.

"Looks different." He said.

"It's clean. I tidied it." Scully said. He smiled then they made their way inside.

'Oh I see.'

Scully led Mulder to the sofa then set him down. He sighed and then rested his head against the back. He closed his eyes while Scully went back to close the door. She took her coat away from him then put it on a chair. Scully sat next to him on the sofa.

"Do you want anything?" She asked him.

"I don't know. I might do later." He said. Scully nodded and then put her hand on his foot. She felt under his sock and up his leg. "What are you doing Scully?" He asked her with a cheeky smile which almost looked hopeful.

"You're cold." She said with a tiny smile then patted his leg. She stood up then went to his bedroom to get a blanket from the bedroom cupboards. Mulder tried to lift his leg up into the table but failed in pain. Scully ran to stop him.

"Mulder no!" She said. He sighed. "Let me do that. You can't strain yourself too much. Just take it easy." She said. Scully put the blanket around him then took hold of his leg. She started to lift.

"Oww… Scully…" He said. Scully put it on the coffee table to rest it. She put a cushion under his ankle.

"Better now?" She asked. He nodded.

"Yes Dr Scully." He said with a smile. Scully rolled her eyes and make her way to the kitchen.

"Are you sure you don't want anything?" She asked him.

"I wouldn't mind a cup of coffee." He said. Scully nodded and started to boil the kettle as the rain started to fall heavily against the windows.

Six days later

"Agent Scully where is Agent Mulder?"

"I'm sorry Sir Mulder is not able to be here today because of his injury."

"Well he needs to be present Agent Scully, this is a serious matter we are talking about here."

"I know Sir and I understand your need for Mulder to be here but I am sorry he is not coming."

"Agent Scully what is the real reason for Agent Mulder not to be here today?"

Scully stared at the panel with fear but a false look of seriousness and control. This was it, she would have to lie. She looked to Skinner and tried to see what he was thinking and tried to get him on her side. But he didn't flinch. She sighed and shifted uneasily in her seat.

"Are you planning to close the X-Files?" Scully asked. She felt her heart skip a beat and tried to control herself. The panel looked at her for a moment.

"Agent Scully." A fierce man said. "We ask the questions. Not you."

"I… I know Sir and I am sorry. I cannot tell you why Agent Mulder is not here today, I can only tell you what I think his reasons are." Scully said trying to keep her voice steady. Six pairs of eyes were looking fiercely at her, questioning her every word to see if she was lying.

"And what would they be Agent Scully?" A woman said looking down her glasses.

"That he is unwell." Scully said again. The woman sighed and shifted in her seat.

"Agent Scully if you do not tell us a better answer we will be forced to hold you…"

"If Mulder is unwell then why didn't he tell us himself that he could not be here this morning?" Skinner suddenly asked. Scully fiddled nervously with her jacket.

"I… that I do not know Sir." Scully said. "Agent Mulder and myself are concerned about you closing the X-Files. That is all we want to find out about."

"Agent Scully we do not wish to express our plans on the X-Files." The woman said with growing anger.

"What if I said that Mulder didn't come to this meeting because he was angry that you were closing the X-Files?" Scully heard herself say. She felt her heart race, they were going to get her and punish her. But it was the only way to get some information out of them. The six members all started talking amongst themselves angrily, except for Skinner who was looking at Scully. Scully met his gaze and gave him a look of a cry for help. He shook his head.

"Agent Scully." A man said looking at her sternly. "Since you have lied to us you will be put into custody until you realise how important it is to tell us the information we need."

Scully felt her heart skip a beat and she suddenly felt very small and helpless. She gasped and opened her mouth to speak but no sound came out. Skinner stared at the panel with disbelief.

"Please… please Sir. I was trying to find out information about my department, my years of work…" Scully started desperately. She felt herself stand up and felt tears sting her eyes.

"AGENT SCULLY!" The woman shouted. Scully stopped and sat back in her chair. "YOU WILL DO AS THE PANEL ASKS YOU TO!"

"Yes." Scully said quietly.

"You shall pack your belongings for three nights at first and make your way to the Washington FBI holding building where you will be taken to a cell and kept there until you have finished your punishment. You shall also tell Agent Mulder of these new developments and tell him that if he does not come to see the panel at 1500 hours today he shall be sent out of the FBI." She said sternly, her body moving sharply as she spoke. "Do you understand?" Scully looked up at her sadly and felt anger and fear from these people. How could she tell Mulder? "DO YOU UNDERSTAND AGENT SCULLY?" She shouted. Scully jumped.

"Yes. Yes mam I understand."

"You may go now Agent Scully." Skinner's voice said. Scully noticed it was full of concern and sadness but she stood up slowly and made her way towards the door. She stepped out of the room and closed the door behind her. As it closed she kept her hand on the doorknob and closed her eyes in disbelief. She felt her body getting weaker and felt a tear roll down her cheek. Scully turned then started to walk away and into the corridor. She made her way to the lift and waited for it to come to her. Somebody pushed past her and said sorry but she didn't notice. She stared at the lift door as it opened. She didn't move.

"Excuse me." A voice said behind her. Scully didn't hear. "Dana?" A woman said. Scully blinked and looked behind her. She looked up at a familiar face of a young girl with long dark hair. She smiled at Dana with concern. Scully stared at her distantly.

"Dana? Are you OK? It's me. I haven't seen you for a while." The woman said. Scully sighed.

"You… you haven't?" Scully said trying to smile.

"No. Dana its Holly." Holly said. Scully blinked again.

"Holly. Oh yeah, hi." She said weakly. They both stepped into the lift.

"What's wrong? Has something happened?" Holly asked her. Scully shook her head and brushed away the tears from her eyes.

"Oh no, nothing. I just didn't get much sleep last night that's all." Scully said. Holly put a friendly hand on her shoulder.

"Dana? Have you been crying?" She asked. Scully shook her head and looked away from her friend. "Are you sure you're ok? Where's Fox?"

"Oh he's um… he got shot last week and he's not been into work yet." Scully said. Holly looked at her in surprise.

"Shot? Oh god Dana I'm sorry. Is he ok?"

"Yeah, yeah he's fine. He's just recovering." Scully said. The lift came to a stop and the door opened.

"Well this is me! You'll be ok right?" Holly said concerned making her way into the corridor.

"Yes. I'll be ok. See you around Holly." Scully said as the doors closed. Scully sighed then backed against the door. She shook her head and stared at the floor and let her eyes fill with more tears as she made her way down to the dark basement where only the X-Files staff could belong.

Scully opened her front door and stepped inside. She looked around her house and sighed. There was no way that she could tell Mulder to his face. She would just break down and make a scene. She worried that he wouldn't go to work and he would lose his job, but the X-Files was his life and he would sacrifice anything for it. Anything except Scully.

Scully sniffed and her lower lip trembled. She walked towards the kitchen and opened her fridge and took out a can of lemonade. She went into the lounge and sat on one of her sofas. She sighed and thought carefully how she would tell her friend without making him too angry or upset, which she knew inside she couldn't prevent. He would blame himself for getting her into this mess because he asked her to tell them why he wasn't there at the meeting. She picked up the control and turned on the TV trying to put her thoughts somewhere else. She checked her watch. 11:15. She needed to start packing in a while… she felt her head get heavy and she pushed herself into the sofa. She had to phone Mulder soon… she had to…

Scully closed her eyes and let herself drift off to sleep.

Part 3

The smoking man smiled when he heard the good news.

"Agent Scully has been put into custody? What wonderful news. What about Fox?" He said slowly.

"He's going to be thrown out of the FBI if he doesn't meet them at the building at 1500 hours." A man said. He was tall and wore a long dark coat.

"Really? That's even better! We've got them both out of the way. Wonderful."

"I talked to the panel and told them what you told me to say."

"Good. Good work. They'll be out very soon." The smoking man said. "Well, you deserve a drink don't you think? Have one, they're in the fridge." He said.

"I have to leave now Sir. Thank you for your offer though." He said. His voice was sinister and his face stern.

"All right." The smoking man said. "Wait…" He said, the man turned and faced him as he moved towards the door. "What have you told Walter Skinner?"

"I told him that they are not to be trusted Sir. I told him everything you told me too, he seems to be turning sides." The man said.

"Thank you." The smoking man said and the sinister man opened the door and exited the room. The smoking man lit another cigarette with a satisfied laugh.

"Good." He said simply then took a puff of his cigarette.

Scully awoke by the sound of her door bell ringing. She jumped up, startled and took a deep breath. The door bell rang again and she put a hand to her head. She thought for a moment… her mind panicked. She checked the time on her watch and felt her heart skip a beat. It was half past three. Scully jumped again at the sound of the door bell ringing. Scully got up quickly and started towards the door. She waited outside it afraid to open it. She wondered if the FBI had come to look for her.

"Who it is?" She said with fear in her voice.

"Scully! It's me, let me in." She heard Mulder say. Scully rushed the open the door before she had time to think.

"MULDER!" She shouted. He stepped in and Scully started to push him back out of the door.

"Scully… what's going on…"

"NO! MULDER GET OUT OF HERE!" She shouted. Mulder stared at his friend with growing concern.

"Scully, what's wrong? Are you OK?"

"NO!" Scully shouted. Mulder frowned in concern. Scully lowered her head and sighed. "I was supposed to tell you… I was supposed to tell you to go into work for a briefing with the panel. It's really serious, you have to go now Mulder… oh god…" Scully said weakly. She put a hand to her face and felt herself start to cry.

"Scully? Why do I have to go to work? Come on, why are you crying?" He asked her putting a friendly hand on her arm.

"No. Mulder you… you have to go now. Go to the headquarters. You had to be there at 1500 hours but now… I guess I must have fallen asleep or something I…" Scully said in a sad voice. She started to close the door.

"Scully, what are you saying?" Mulder said holding the door back.

"You have to go now, or you'll lose your job… unless you've already lost it." She said in a whisper as if it was something she didn't want to tell him. Which is really wasn't. Mulder didn't reply. "Go." Scully said looking into his eyes. He stared at her for a few moments then started to back away from the door.

"I… I don't understand why…" Mulder said.

"Just go Mulder, I'll explain later." Scully said sadly. "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you. I was so tired… I've had such an awful day…" she said feeling tears run down her cheek again. She looked at the floor as Mulder started to run out to his car. She closed the door behind her and closed her eyes. Scully felt as if a hundred rocks had fallen on her, she couldn't think, she couldn't move and she had no feeling except complete and utter misery. She put her hands to her face and leant against the door as she slid her back down it and reached the floor. She sobbed heavily as she heard Mulder's car drive out of her drive. Scully started to pray that he hadn't lost his job. When he would come back she wouldn't be there to talk to.

Mulder stormed onto Skinner's floor and walked towards his office. The secretary looked at him with anger.

"Agent Mulder? You're too late now…" She started but Mulder just ignored her and pushed the door open. Mulder stopped and stared at the group of directors staring at him. Some stood up and had packed their belongings.

"Well, Agent Mulder. It looks like you're going to have to pack your bags because you've lost your job." The stern woman said. Mulder felt anger boil in his blood.

"No! Wait Scully didn't tell me until just a few minutes ago. I only just found out and I had no idea why I had to come here but I came because she seemed pretty upset about it. Could someone please explain why Agent Scully was crying as she told me this?" Mulder said with anger. They all stared at him for a few minutes and Skinner shifted on his feet.

"Agent Scully had been put in custody." A man said. Mulder stared in disbelief.

"WHAT?" He exclaimed.

"She lied to us about where you were and why you hadn't come to the hearing this morning." The man continued. Mulder tried to object but couldn't find the words.

"Would you like to tell us why you objected to come this morning Agent Mulder because we would all be very interested to know."

Mulder stared at the people who looked at him like he was a caged animal in the zoo. He felt extremely threatened. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. Scully had been put into custody because of what he'd told her to do. He shook his head in disbelief.

"You can't put Scully in custody." He said.

"Agent Scully has not even signed herself into custody yet Agent Mulder so we don't know if she will get there anyway." The woman said with a smirk. Some others laughed. Mulder nearly screamed at them but he had to keep his cool. He could see that Skinner wasn't laughing.

"Scully lied because I told her to." Mulder said quietly. He felt great guilt and sorrow and he had to tell them the truth. He couldn't let Scully get punished like that.

"What are you saying Agent Mulder?" The woman said.

"I told her to tell you that I hadn't come in because of my injury. As you can see, my injury has gone and I have recovered. The reason why I didn't come this morning is because I didn't want the X-Files to close and I was too angry to come to this hearing because I knew it would be about that." Mulder said.

"We already know that Agent Mulder. Dana told us that already." Skinner said. Mulder turned towards him. "We will reconsider Agent Scully's position in custody." He said. Mulder took a huge sigh of relief.

"But we haven't finished with you Agent Mulder. You have disobeyed the rules of the FBI." The woman said. She whispered something to the man next to her and then looked back at Mulder. He sighed and waited for the news. He could already see it coming.

"You will pack your belongings and leave this building. We will notify you when we think it is necessary." The woman said. Mulder looked at Skinner who sighed and put his head in his hands. Mulder shook his head.

"Those X-Files are my life. YOU CAN'T CLOSE THEM!" Mulder found himself standing and shouting at the panel.

"AGENT MULDER!" The woman shouted. "YOU WILL LEAVE THIS BUILDING WITH YOUR BELONGINGS AND YOU WILL HAVE NO CONTACT WITH AGENT SCULLY!" Mulder felt himself nearly faint.

"But…" He started.

"Agent Scully will be working and you have no need to contact her about work or anything to do with the FBI of that matter. Anyway, in the meanwhile she will be in custody. Now, please leave. You have done everything that was asked for." A man said harshly. Mulder turned and left the room without a word. He closed the door and found himself facing the secretary.

"You were not supposed to go into that office without my authorisation." She said in a squeaky voice. Mulder shook his head and took one step towards her.

"Go and get a life which is more than sitting here and shouting at people. You think you're so important, but you're really not." He said slowly then walked out of the room slamming the door behind him.

Mulder's journey home was slow and tiring. He rubbed his eyes and massaged his forehead while keeping one hand on the wheel. Looking back at the road he saw rain fall heavily on the windscreen. The patter of the raindrops echoed in his head and he sighed. When he'd tried Scully hadn't answered his call. He turned into her drive and stopped the car. He ran in the rain towards the front door and saw that the windows were dark. There was no light in the house. Mulder frowned. She couldn't possibly be in bed yet. Mulder remembered that she had said she was tired. May be she had gone to bed. Mulder knocked on the door then rang the doorbell. There was no answer. He looked in through the window, the rain plummeting down on his leather coat. He held a hand to shelter his eyes and looked inside. There were no lights. The bathroom light wasn't on, nor was the bedroom door slightly open. Mulder started to feel his heart beat fast in confusion. Where was she? He distantly heard the phone ring and saw the light flashing on the phone to show that she had not checked her answer phone messages. Mulder remembered the message he had left her.

"Scully?" He said quietly. Mulder turned from the house and ran back into his car. He sat down and slammed the door. Putting two hands on the steering wheel he sat and thought to himself for a few moments. Today was just too strange to handle.

"I hope you have understood these rules Agent Scully. You will not be allowed to plead for your own release at any time." A man said. He was tall and large and his face was stern. Scully raised her eyes to his face and shivered. A small gust of wind was blowing through the window in her cell.

"I have understood." She said without emotion.

"Good. This is your cell. Breakfast is at 0800 hours." The man said. He closed the door. It closed with a loud bang and Scully was suddenly shut into darkness. She looked around in the darkness. After about three seconds lights flickered on then shone from above her. She stared at her surroundings. Scully slowly lowered her head to her side to see her small suitcase at her side. She then looked at the bed and table in her small cell. It was whitewashed and bright and the bed was satisfactory. It wasn't a bad cell and it was used for FBI agents. But it was also disgusting. Scully could smell the strange smell of cleaning fluids and her sheets were so crisp and white that the brightness of the room nearly blinded her. She knelt down and opened her bag. She emptied it putting her clothes onto the bed. A small door was in the corner leading to a toilet and a washbasin. Showers were downstairs. Scully felt herself collapse on the bed suddenly and she put her hands to her face. What was she going to do? Mulder wasn't there and she had no idea what had happened to him today. She just hoped that he would come to visit her, but it didn't seem likely.


	2. Two

Part 4 

A tall dark man walked into the FBI corrections building. He held a newspaper and he wore a New York cap. The man had his hood of his sweatshirt over the cap. He kept his head low.

"Excuse me." The large guard said and he stopped the man for a second. The tall man turned his head. "Excuse me, can I help you?" The man asked the tall stranger.

"Yes." The tall man said in a low voice. The white walls of the building made his dark clothing stand out. "I wish to speak with one of the agents here." He said. The large man stared at the man with suspicion.

"You can speak to one of the agents only if you have been granted permission. All of these agents have been put here because they have broken the laws of the FBI and they are to be kept away from society and punished…" The man started. The tall man slammed his hand down on the desk.

"I know why they're here." He said with anger. The large man stared at him with fear. "Here are the papers." The man said with a deep voice. His brown eyes were flaming with rage.

The large man checked the papers and put them through a machine then stamped them. He nodded.

"You can go straight through. Agent Scully is in cell number 22 just down the hall." He said, his fat chin rolling as he spoke. The tall dark man nodded and turned away from the man.

"Thank you." His voice was full of tension. The man started to make his way down the hall.

Mulder sighed and pushed his hands into his jean pockets. His sweater hood was still resting on his cap and he kept his head low. If anyone noticed that he was coming to see Scully he would get punished too. He was denied permission to meet with her. He felt the anger boil inside him and shook his head. He was so angry that she was in here. He had only found out that morning. He didn't believe it when skinner told him. She didn't deserve this, it was all him fault not hers. Mulder deserved this, he had hidden from them and she had covered for him. It was his fault. He couldn't bear to see her in here. It wasn't a bad looking place but it was full of hatred and isolation. Scully was a brilliant agent who did not need to be here.

Mulder raised his head a little to see the cell numbers. The doors were high and each had a small hole which could be opened and closed for food and speaking. Mulder sighed and made his way to cell number 20, 21 and then 22.

The hole was closed. Mulder stared at the door and sighed. He moved his hand to the hole and pushed it aside.

Scully saw a small gap of light enter through the hole in the door. She stood up suddenly and moved towards it quickly. It opened more and more and then opened completely. She saw a dark shadow in front of her. Scully frowned and tried to see who it was. A face came into view but it was dark and covered by a cap and a sweater hood. A shadow fell on the figures features. Scully looked at the face, the eyes. Her heart skipped and she gasped. She felt excitement fill her blood. Scully smiled a little.

"Mulder!" She gasped. Mulder smiled and nodded.

"Hey." He said softly. Scully looked at him with disbelief.

"Mulder, What are you doing here?" She said.

"Scully, I've come to see you. Is there any way I can get in there to see you?" Mulder said. Scully looked at the door and felt disappointment.

"It's locked I can't open it." She said with annoyance. "Mulder you've got to get me out of here I can't stand it." She said. Mulder looked at her with sadness.

"I know, I know. Don't worry. I'm going to." He said.

"How?"

"If I told you, you wouldn't let me go through with it." He said. Scully shook her head.

"Mulder have they punished you? Do you still have your job?" Scully said quietly. She put her fingers to the hole and pulled herself nearer. She stared at him. Their faces were so close.

"I've lost it." Mulder said quietly. Scully gasped.

"No…" She said in a devastated whisper.

"For the moment. It's not definite Scully. It'll be all right." He said. He tried hard to make it sound more positive but he knew that he sounded unconvincing. Scully put a hand to her mouth and closed her eyes.

"No…" she gasped. Scully put her hand through the hole and grasped onto him. Mulder took her hand and squeezed it tight. "I'm so sorry Mulder… it's my entire fault you were late… I… I was so stupid." Scully said in shock. Her eyes started to glisten with tears. She felt guilty. Mulder shook his head and felt his heart drop.

"Scully come on, it's not your fault it was an accident." He said. Scully shook her head. Mulder sighed. He lowered his head and heard her sigh. Mulder squeezed her hand. Suddenly he caught sight of the keypad on the door. It was green. Mulder pressed a button which read, 'active'. The door gave a hissing sound. He jumped back. Scully raised her head and stared at the door.

"What? What's happening?" Scully asked him. Mulder let go of her hand and pushed open the door. It opened with ease and Mulder walked into the cell. Scully stared at him sadly. He smiled a little.

"I love what you've done with the place." He said. However it did not make her laugh. Scully shook her head and put a hand to her face.

"I might never work with you again." She said. Mulder stared at her sadly and shook his head. He moved towards her slowly and put his arms around her tightly. Scully grasped onto him quickly and held him close. He stroked her hair.

"That won't happen. Never." He said softly. "They can't separate us Scully."

"All right get out." A guard said. He was standing in the door. His voice was loud and piercing. The two jumped apart and looked at the guard.

"No, don't leave me here. I might not see you for ages." She said sadly with fear. Mulder moved towards her and kissed her on the head.

"I have to leave." He said softly.

"Times up, come on move along." The guard said. Mulder frowned at him then turned to Scully.

"No…" She said sadly. Mulder squeezed her hand.

"Come on, you know I can't stay." He said.

"I SAID HURRY UP! GET OUT!" The guard said. He took Mulder by the arm and pulled him away from Scully quickly. Scully stared at Mulder sadly and she nodded. Mulder gave her one last look. He dropped the newspaper he had been carrying on the floor. He exited the cell. The door closed with a loud bang which made Scully flinch. She was left alone in the darkness. The gap in the door was snapped shut and the room was lonely, cold and disgusting again. Scully bit her lip and closed her eyes. She sighed and pushed away the tears. But they were too powerful. She felt them fall down her cheek and she leant her head against the wall. She closed her eyes and sighed. She had never felt so guilty, heartbroken, lonely and miserable in her whole life.

Part 5

Mulder was so angry, so distraught he left the building in a hurry to stop himself being taken over by his emotions and running back to see her again. This was it, this was war. He knew this had something to do with the smoking man he could feel it; in the headquarters earlier he had felt it. He needed to get to skinner and ask him what was going on. He needed to know so that he could strike back. The feeling was killing him and he wanted to sort it out as quickly as possible.

He fumbled in his pocket for his car keys when he heard a noise to his left. Mulder raised his head and looked around scanning the car park. There were a few street lamps, one was flickering. Some turned over trash cans were on the pavement. Mulder sighed.

"Damn racoons." He mumbled then got into the car. He closed his door and put his keys into the ignition starting the engine. He pushed the car into reverse and started out of the parking space when suddenly large something hit his car window with a huge crash. Mulder gasped and slammed on the breaks.

"Shit!" He exclaimed and got out of the car quickly to see what he had hit. Mulder stared in disbelief and horror at the bloodied body lying in a painfully unnatural position.

"Have you succeeded?" The smoking man said with his back to the sinister man. He smoked his cigarette and the clouds of smoke rose over his head.

"Yes. He had been killed." The sinister man said.

"Good. And what about Agent Mulder and his little.. accident?"

"It is taking place now; I got some others to do it." The man said turning towards the door.

"What did you say?" The smoking man said now with more force. The sinister man sighed and stopped by the door.

"I said the action is taking place now by my other colleagues Sir." He said.

"Why didn't you do the job? Are you sure we can trust these people?" The smoking man said with a stern voice.

"Yes they are loyal to the cause." He said. The smoking man looked at the man sternly and took another puff from his cigarette.

"You had better be telling the truth, I suppose we will have to be careful and they will have to be executed." The smoking man said. The sinister man stared at the man with a pained expression, however he could not disagree.

Mulder stared at the body. Blood was on his windscreen and there was a small crack in the glass. He felt his heart race and panicked. But why was he panicking? He hadn't seen this man coming! He hadn't been in the road surely, it couldn't be true. Mulder started to wonder if he was still alive and if it was all a hoax, but he still felt shocked at what had happened.

"Sir..?" Mulder said and put a hand on the body. He felt the man's pulse. There was nothing. Mulder felt himself shake both with fear and shock. He was going to be punished, he had killed someone.

"Shit." Mulder said. "Shit, shit, SHIT!" He shouted angrily. Mulder looked around in desperation. He was so angry, so confused. Suddenly he saw a figure standing about twelve feet away from him. Mulder looked up in shock.

"Hey! Hey who are you!" He shouted. The figure stood still. "HEY! FBI! You'd better answer me!" Mulder shouted and cursed himself for not bringing his gun along. Mulder walked towards the figure. He heard voices behind him coming from the building. Mulder's heart was racing.

"Who are you?" He said getting nearer. Mulder stared at the figure and took two slow steps towards it. Then suddenly he heard the rush of footsteps coming at him from both sides of his body. Mulder looked frantically to his sides but it was too dark. Then he saw a large object rise up over him and come crashing down onto his head. Mulder cried out but it was too late. There was a moment of immense pain, and then he felt himself plunge into deep darkness. His body fell to the floor in a heap. One of the men looked down at Mulder.

"We've got him, lets go."

Scully ran to the small window in her cell. She felt her heart beat strongly in her chest and tears sting her eyes. She'd heard a crash! And then a loud shout! Something had happened! The shout, it had sounded just like Mulder! Scully raised herself up to try to look out of the small window but it was! too dark she couldn't see anything. She felt herself panic and shouted out in frustration. She ran towards her cell door and banged on it.

"HEY! HEY!" She shouted. "GUARD? PLEASE! LET ME OUT! WHATS GOING ON! HEY!" She screamed and banged. She could hear people's voices and people running outside. Scully hit the door hard and screamed at the top of her voice. "MULDER!" Scully felt the short breaths rise up her throat in panic. "PLEASE! SOMEBODY LET ME OUT I HAVE TO SEE WHAT IS GOING ON! WHATS HAPPENING!" Scully was holding onto the door and pushing it hard. A guard came towards her cell and banged opened the hole in the door. Scully shouted through it.

"Will you be quiet? We've got a situation here so just let us get on with it will you?" He said angrily. Scully banged on the door. "Hey! Stop it."

"What's happened? Tell me please! My partner was it him?" Scully said with panic.

"There's been an accident I don't know what has happened I've been told to stay here to make sure.."

"FIND OUT WHAT'S HAPPENED!" Scully interrupted him. "MY PARTNER MIGHT BE IN DANGER I HEARD A SHOUT! IT WAS HIM!" Scully screamed. The guard looked at her with a helpless expression then sighed and went away. Scully looked after him and banged on the door. She felt herself collapse, her emotions taking over and she put her hands to the door. Scully took a huge breath to try to calm herself and felt her body shake. Her hands firm on the door to steady herself but she felt herself fall to the floor sliding down the door then leaning against it. She pulled her knees towards her and hugged herself trying to stop her body shaking.

The next morning Skinner looked at the photos. He stared at them with disbelief. There was Mulder's car and a dead body. He was completely stunned.

"Thank you for these Shelia." He said to his secretary. She nodded and went out the office. Skinner looked at them and tried to comprehend the sight. He sighed and put a hand on his head and wondered if Scully had heard about what had happened. Skinner knew that there must be something being it, but he had no right to say anything about it or he would most probably put his life in danger. He looked sadly as his desk and sighed. He picked up the phone and called the corrections unit.

"Yes this is Assistant Director Skinner. I'd like to visit Agent Dana Scully in the next hour. Thank you."

He put the phone down and picked up his coat. Putting the photos in his pocket he made his way out of the office.

The smoking man looked down to the floor at the crumpled figure of Mulder's body. He stared at him and took puffs from his cigarette. Looking down at him made him feel even more superior and he felt like he had won. He had Mulder now and he wouldn't be getting away.

"Sir? What would you like us to do now?" One of the kidnappers said. The smoking man smoked his cigarette.

"Tie him up. Make sure he can't get free." He said quietly. The men walked towards Mulder and lifted him up and dragged him over to the side of the dark room. They got out a chain with hand cuffs attached and tied Mulder to a large hook on the wall. They let go of him and Mulder flopped down onto the floor again. The smoking man felt a small smile escape his lips.

"Good." He said. The men looked at him expectantly.

"Well Sir, when are we getting paid?" They said. The smoking man smoked his cigarette and looked at them with a blank expression.

"Well you see, I'm not going to pay you. I'm sorry but I am going to have to do something else." He said. The men looked at each other in confusion. The smoking man reached for his gun.

"What do you mean Sir? We thought we were going to get paid! You promised!" They said becoming angry. The smoking man laughed.

"Yes I did. But I'm sorry, this can't get out to anyone." He said. The men looked at him. "It has to end." The smoking man said then took his gun out and shot them down.

The men fell to the floor and the door behind the smoking man opened. The sinister man came in and saw the men on the floor.

"You really did kill them." He said. The smoking man smiled.

"Of course I did." He said. The smoking man walked away and sat down on his chair. "Take the bodies away and bury them please." He said. The sinister man looked at the smoking man with anger but he couldn't refuse. He reluctantly pulled the bodies out of the room and into the night. As he closed the door the smoking man turned towards Mulder's limp body.

"Well Fox, we'll see what we can do for you when you wake up shall we? I wonder if that Scully of yours is worried. All this time, all these memories of your mother, you father and I, Fox, you have no idea. I think I need to show you who's boss around here. Those X-Files aren't getting anywhere anymore." He said and let out a small satisfied laugh.

Scully lay on her bed facing the ceiling. She stared at the bright lights which were so bright and so unwelcoming. The cell looked like a hospital but even more pristine and unnerving. She moved over on her side and faced the wall. Scully put hands up to her head and held it in sadness. She sighed then got up quickly and stood in the middle of the room. She looked around and saw the something she hadn't noticed yesterday. It was a newspaper. Mulder had left it when he had left but she had been so upset she had completely forgotten about it. She stared at the newspaper and then went to pick it up her eyes wide with interest. Scully opened it and saw the front page. She scanned the pictures until she saw a small one at the bottom of the page. It had been circled. Scully sat down on her bed and looked more carefully, her heart racing with anticipation. She read the writing below the picture. But she did not understand. Frustrated that she couldn't understand Mulder's message she looked more carefully at it.

"Missing persons and criminal out of jail." Scully looked at the picture and saw a photo of a man who looked sinister and angry. She caught the look in his eyes. "Andrew Greenwood, 25, escaped from jail on the 13th July in the early hours of the morning. He is known to be very dangerous and has a history for working against the government and with certain terrorist groups." Scully stopped and stared at the picture again. Working against the government. She sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "Here we go again." She said. Scully closed her eyes and sighed. She couldn't stop worrying about Mulder and no one had told her anything. She was so sure that she had heard his cry, but she couldn't do anything about it. She looked at the newspaper and tried hard to think about what it might be. Obviously Mulder thought that this man was something to do with everything that was happening and Scully knew that the smoking man must be behind it too. There was no doubt about that because he had stolen files and attacked Mulder. Scully sighed and put the newspaper down. Suddenly there was a loud noise from the door and it opened. Scully looked up in surprise and got up hopefully. She prayed it was Mulder..

"Agent Scully." Skinner said. He looked over to her.

"Sir?" She said walking towards him. Scully felt fear and worry rise in her heart and she looked at Skinner with a desperate expression. "What is it?"

"I need to talk to you." He said. Scully nodded.

"What about? What's happened? It's Mulder isn't it?" She said sadly.

"Dana please calm down. Yes it's about Agent Mulder. I need to show you something." Skinner said. Scully sighed and sat down on her bed. Skinner came over and sat next to her.

"I wish you weren't in here. I'm trying hard to get you out but there's only so much I can do." He said with a more friendly tone. Scully smiled a little.

"Yeah well it doesn't matter now. Tell me about Mulder." She said. Skinner looked at her and got out the photos from his pocket and handed them over to her. Scully looked at them.

"What is it?" She said. "Who's the body?"

"I'll leave some of these with you, they're not the originals.' said Skinner, trying to postpone the bad news.

'Skinner.. what is this about?'

'That's Mulder's car, and that's a dead body. On the car." Skinner said. Scully stared at the photos with disbelief.

"Are you saying that Mulder killed someone?" She said in a small voice.

"That's what everyone is saying Scully." Skinner said in a sad voice. Scully looked at him.

"You don't believe it do you?" She said looking at him with sad eyes.

"It doesn't matter what I believe, I just have to make sure that my agents are safe." He said. Scully frowned and then stood up quickly.

"I knew it! Where's Mulder? He's gone hasn't he, I heard a shout last night! I heard him just as he was leaving me!" She shouted.

"Agent!" Skinner shouted. Scully stopped. Skinner stood up. "Agent Mulder was here last night?" He asked more calmly.

"Yes! He came to see me." Scully said.

"He wasn't supposed to do that." Skinner said.

"I know."

"Well what happened?"

"There were noises! People went outside something happened outside and I heard a crash then I heard someone cry out for help and it was.. I think it was Mulder." Scully said feeling tears catch in her throat. Skinner looked at her in silence then shifted on his feet uncomfortably.

"Scully, Agent Mulder has gone missing." Skinner said softly.

She felt herself fall. Scully's knees nearly gave way and she sat down on her bed and stared at the wall with wide eyes. Suddenly it all made sense, he was missing. He had gone. Scully felt tears rush to her eyes and she felt herself shake.

"Dana, its all right. I just hope that he's all right because people are saying that he has run away because he killed the man who was found on his car." Skinner said. Scully looked at him. "But from what you've told me it could be something very different."

Scully looked back to the wall and then sighed. She put her head in her hands then ran her fingers through her hair and sat up.

"Mulder wouldn't kill someone." Scully said.

"I know." Skinner said. Scully sighed.

"He wouldn't run away. I don't think that he's run away, I think he's been set up and taken away." Scully said quietly. Tears stung her eyes again and she turned away from Skinner unable to meet his eyes.

"You think he was kidnapped?"

"Yes." She said quietly.

"Well.. I don't know if people are going to believe that." Sinner said sadly. Scully nodded.

"I know." She said and turned to face Skinner again with anger in her eyes. "And I'm stuck here! When my partner is somewhere being held hostage and he can't escape and no one is going to look for him." She said and a tear rolled down her cheek. Skinner looked at her with sympathy.

"People will be looking for him if they think that he's on the run." He said.

"I don't care! I need to get out of here! No one's going to help him and I'm the only one that can!" She said, her voice getting louder. She looked at the pictures in her hand and angrily pushed them away. "These.. these are.. THESE AREN'T THE TRUTH HE DIDN'T KILL ANYONE!" Scully shouted and was ready to rip up the photos when Skinner reached out for them and snatched them from her.

"Scully! Those are evidence!" He said. Scully sighed and stared at Skinner with fearful eyes. Skinner looked at her to try to tell her to stop.

"Sir, I.. I'm sorry." She said weakly and lowered herself to the floor. She fell on the ground and pulled her knees towards her.

"Scully?" Skinner asked with concern. Scully shook her head.

"I have to get out of here. Please, look for Mulder." She said looking up at Skinner. Tears streamed from her eyes.

"Dana.. I'm so sorry. I'll look." He said. Scully nodded.

"Thank you." She said quietly then turned away from him and put her head down to her knees. Skinner looked at her, but he couldn't do anything so he quietly went out the door leaving Scully crying on the floor.

Part 6

Mulder opened his eyes slowly. He felt around the area where he was but couldn't find anything. He didn't know where he was and he could feel a huge throbbing pain in his head. Mulder groaned and tried to push himself up. He fell to the side and hit the floor again. He grunted and tried hard to look where he was. Mulder's eyes were blurred and he couldn't see a thing except a small blurred light. Mulder stared at it and tried to focus. Suddenly he felt a hand grab him and he was lifted up. Mulder cried out and fell limp to the force holding him up.

"GET UP!" Someone shouted. The voice was harsh and angry. Mulder frowned in pain.

"Please.. who are you.." He said weakly. The force moved him to the side and threw him down on the floor again. Mulder fell with a grunt. "Ow.." He said painfully.

"You're pathetic." The voice said.

"No you are." Mulder said gaining some courage. There was a silence.

"What did you just say?" The harsh voice said. Mulder grunted and tried to sit up again but realised that his hands were tied together, he couldn't get them apart.

"Who are you?" Mulder asked weakly.

"Someone who wants to make you have a VERY uncomfortable stay." The man said. Mulder sighed.

"Can you give me a minute? I can't really move." Mulder said weakly with a sarcastic tone. He felt the man move around him.

"Don't mess around Agent. Now GET UP!" The man shouted. Mulder grunted and tried to stand but fell.

"I cant!" Mulder said with desperation.

"Fine!" The man said and Mulder felt him move away. He didn't know where he'd gone, his vision was still swaying. Mulder felt his heart beat get slower and he felt so heavy, so tired and everything hurt, everywhere. He grimaced in pain.

"..Scully?" Mulder said weakly. Suddenly the man reappeared. Mulder sighed. The man grabbed him by his jumper.

"If you're not going to get up, I'm just going to have to punish you." The man said with a harsh tone. Mulder felt fear rise in his chest.

"What.. what do you mean?" He asked weakly trying to find his breath. The man didn't answer. Mulder tried to move out of the way, he knew something was going to happen, he tried to push himself away from the wall but he realised that he couldn't. He was tied to it. Mulder looked around frantically for some escape but it was too late. The man hit Mulder hard on the back with a large metal pipe. Mulder cried out in agony and fell to the ground onto his face and front.

Scully stared at the wall. Her eyes were puffy from crying and the glare of the white lights was starting to make her head ache. She slowly got up and made her way to the window and looked out.

"Miss Scully." A voice said from behind her. Scully jumped and turned around to the cell door.

"Yes?"

"I have a letter for you." The guard said and put the letter through the hole. Scully ran to the door.

"Did they say who it was from?" She asked. There was no answer as the guard was walking up the hall. Scully stared at the letter in surprise. She went to pick it up and slowly opened it. There was one single name on the front which was hers. The writing was not familiar.

Scully opened it with care and gasped in fright as a something fell out of it. She bent over and slowly picked it up.

It was a small plastic bag which was stained with a red coloured liquid. She slowly opened the bag. To her horror Scully recognised what was inside straight away. Scully's heart skipped a beat and suddenly everything became hazy. She felt nauseous and had to sit down on her bed to steady herself.

'Oh my god..' Scully said quietly in shock. What she held was a clump of Mulder's hair. It was stained with blood. She started to shake causing the bloodied hair to fall from her fingers. With one last breath of despair, she fainted.

Two hours later Agent Skinner drove up in his car and went into the building.

'Assistant Director Walter Skinner I've come to see Dana Scully'. He said urgently to the secretary. She nodded.

'Oh yes she has been asking for you. Saying something about Mulder's hair or something.. Sir? Excuse me?' But it was too late, for Skinner was already at her door.

Scully lay on her bed and jumped as the door opened. She sat up and stared at Skinner.

'Dana?' He said slowly. Scully nodded.

'Hello Sir.' She said softly. Her head hung sadly and she leant against the wall.

'Is everything all right? I heard you fainted.'

'Yes. I got a.. a package.' She said quietly. 'Its Mulder's hair.'

Skinner stared at her as he let the information register in his brain. Taking a deep breath he moved towards her and sat down next to her.

'His hair?' He said softly. Scully nodded solemnly. The feeling of nausea crept up her stomach.

'It has blood on it.' She said blankly. She sensed that the atmosphere was starting to become more static and quickly stood up and walked to the other side of the room with her head held low. She couldn't face him.

'Where is it?' Skinner said, his voice was now more full of anger.

'It's under my bed.'

'Have you told anyone about it?'

'No. I knew that they'd take it and throw it away. No one believes me in here.' She said. Skinner reached under the bed and picked up the plastic bag with the hair in. He studied it for a minute. Scully stood silently.

'We have to do something.' She said finally.

'Yes.. I'm taking this to be analysed.' Skinner said getting up. His voice was angry and his actions were fast. Scully could sense his worry, as it usually came out as anger.

'Thank you Sir.' She said quietly.

The two stood for a moment and then Skinner sighed and moved towards the door.

'This will stop soon, I promise you.' He said. Scully nodded a little as he left the cell. The slamming of the heavy door made her jump again.

Part 7

The smoking man sat in his chair and took another puff from him cigarette. The room was full of smoke now and one single floor lamp lit up the area between him and the other armchair in which a weak Mulder sat in. The light lit up the floating smoke in the air. The smoking man let out a small laugh. Mulder opened his eyes slightly and stared angrily at him.

'How long have you known about me Fox?' The smoking man said calmly. Mulder let out a cough.

'Too long.' He said in a rasping voice.

'Really? Well I think that you should be thankful to me, I looked after your mother when your father wasn't there..'

'Shut up.' Mulder said with fierce anger. 'My father was a hell of a lot better than you. My mother can't remember you at all.'

'So she says..' The smoking man said with a smirk.

'You really are a son of a bitch you know that..'

'Agent Mulder I wouldn't say that if I were you seeing as your reservation here at the moment isn't particularly first class is it..' the smoking man said with a laugh. Mulder nervously looked behind him and felt one of the men come nearer and tighten his legs to the chair. Mulder winced.

'I think they're tight enough..' he said. The smoking man leant towards him and lit up another cigarette.

'Well lets discuss what you're here for shall we?'

'I think so its all a bit pointless to me really..' Mulder said.

'The X-Files are dead agent Mulder. I have the ones which I wanted… the file with Samantha's case on..'

'SON OF A..!' Mulder shouted and tried to lunge forward to him but was pulled back by the tightness of the ropes. The man from behind hit him over the head. Mulder cried out as stars filled his eyes. 'HEY!' He shouted.

'It's all right Richard..' The smoking man said to the man. 'Let him try to fight back, he can't get free.'

'How.. how could you take that file from me… you know how much that means to me.. you son of a.. bitch..' Mulder said weakly.

'Leave it be Agent Mulder. I won't need you any more so you won't need to have the files. You might have guessed that I will dispose of you when I have shown you what you have always wanted to see.'

'What do you mean..?' Mulder asked with fear.

'The aliens?' The smoking man said. Mulder stared in wonder and disbelief.

'You're a liar! You don't have an alien. I don't believe you.' Mulder said angrily.

'Oh I do agent Mulder, I am in charge of everything in this government. I have my ways of disposing evidence. Sometimes I keep it.' The smoking man said with a smile.

'You.. why didn't you give it up! Scully and I have been looking for the truth for years!'

'Of course! Do you feel like a fool Fox?' He said smirking.

'No!' Mulder shouted. 'We have worked hard and if it wasn't for bastards like you the whole world would know all about the existence of extra-terrestrials! Why are you hiding it!' Mulder said angrily.

'There are things in this life that people should not be allowed to see Agent Mulder.' The smoking man said. 'I'm going to show you what I have, I think its only fair seeing as you will die afterwards.'

'Don't try and make yourself look like the hero..' Mulder threatened.

'Oh but I am Fox, I really am.' The smoking man said as he threw another cigarette butt to the floor.

'What are you going to do with Scully when I'm.. dead.' Mulder said weakly. His heart beat fast.

'Agent Scully will also be killed. She knows too much already and would only carry on your work. You have bewitched her too Fox, really I thought you were the only spooky one.'

'NO! SHE DOESN'T DESERVE IT! ITS ME THAT YOU SHOULD KILL NOT SCULLY!' Mulder shouted. 'I WAS THE ONE THAT STARTED ALL OF THIS!'

'I am sure that she would want to follow your path Mulder, are you telling me that I know her better than you do?' The smoking man said with a smirk.

'I can't let you kill her for helping me with the x-files.' Mulder said sadly.

'And don't think that she'll be getting out of that cell yet either.' He said with a laugh. 'I've arranged for her to be kept there for quite a bit longer.

Mulder felt the anger rise in his blood, 'You've got to let her out! I'm out of the FBI now! She can go back to work!'

'I think I'll keep her in there a bit longer. She is just as important to the X-Files as you are Mulder, so she should suffer.. just as you will.' The smoking man said smiling. He lit another cigarette.

'No!.. She.. she isn't..' Mulder said weakly. His words were failing him as he knew there was nothing he could do. He sighed desperately and felt hot tears sting his eyes. It was his entire fault. He was going to get her killed.

5.00PM

The cell lights flashed on and off. Scully got up and went to her door. She banged on it until the guard came over to her cell.

'Hey what the hell do you think you're doing!' He said. Scully sighed and got ready to see how much longer she was going to have to stay in this hell hole.

'I want to know how long I'm going to be in here for. Surely I've had enough time!' Scully said.

'Oh, well I don't think you'll be going soon sweetheart.' The guard said with a little wink.

'What do you mean?' Scully exclaimed.

'Orders from the office, you can't get out of here.' The guard said casually and started to walk away.

'What! No! I have to get out of here! My partner is in trouble! PLEASE!' Scully shouted. 'PLEASE! LET ME OUT! I CAN'T STAND IT ANY LONGER!'

The guard came back to her door and looked at her crossly.

'If you don't SHUT UP I'll put my own word in to keep you in her until you rot!' He said. Scully glared at him and he walked briskly up the hall. She stared after him and felt he anger and emotion boil up inside her. She screamed and kicked the wall hard. 'NO!'

Scully felt the tears come again and she sank to the floor. Trying to catch her breath she pulled her knees up to her chest and held them with her arms. 'Mulder.. I.. I can't do this.. please.. please be all right..' She said softly between sobs. Scully lowered her head into her knees and tried to hide herself from the world and her bright, sickly cell.

1.00AM

Scully woke up on the floor. She blinked and in the darkness, she scrambled across the room and pulled herself up and went over to her sink. She brushed her teeth and went over to her bed. Yawning, she pulled the covers off the bed and got in. She felt a lot more secure in it and fell asleep again.

3.00AM

She woke up and checked her watch. Sighing, she saw the time and wondered why she was sleeping so irregularly. Scully felt awake so she got out of bed and went over to her door. The lights were off and the whole corridor was still. The place was eerie and fake, Scully shivered as a cold breeze brushed past her legs. Moving over to the small desk she saw something in the moonlight which she hadn't noticed before. There was a paper clip from a group of photos Skinner had brought for her to look at. Scully's head whirred into gear as she remembered a tip from FBI training.

'How to pick locks..' She said quietly.

Scully stared at the paper clip and wondered if it was possible, if it was too risky or if it just had to be done because she wasn't sure who to trust. She knew that if she stayed in custody Mulder could be killed any moment. If they were both being controlled by the smoking man, then she had very little chance of getting out.

Scully concentrated on the idea. 'It's now or never.' She said to herself. Scully sighed and felt the adrenaline rush inside of her. This was going to be a serious felony, however she felt the need to do it and the need to find Mulder and to save him from whatever situation he was in. She had to get out.

Scully grabbed the paper clip and stared to fumble with the small lock on her side of the door. The key card would work from the outside, but from inside the only way to undo the lock was by key. A small beam of moonlight shone on the door and she twisted the paperclip into one line of wire. She felt the nervous sweat beads on her forehead and took a deep breath to relax herself.

'Come on, come on..' She said as she fiddled and twisted with the lock. She felt her body tense up and her anger and emotion fuel her escape attempt. She twisted the clip around and up and down but it wasn't catching.

'Come on!' She said more forcefully. She pushed it in and up and up and in and to the side but still, nothing. Feeling more and more determined she twisted it to the side and down and heard a small 'click'.

Scully stared at the door and felt her heart lift. She took a deep breath and attempted to open the door and to her delight it did. Scully nearly jumped with happiness and she closed it again feeling hope and excitement run in her body. 'Right.' She said calmly and took a deep breath. She mapped out her run in her mind, down the corridor and out of the door before anyone would notice her. If they did, then she would run very fast and hope that they wouldn't catch her. She was prepared to hide behind the front desk until the coast was clear.

Scully's heart was beating so fast that she was nearly sick with fear and excitement. She looked around at her cell hopefully for the last time and slowly but surely pulled the heavy door open.

Scully edged her way around the door and found herself on the other side. She felt it click shut behind her and let a breath of relief escape her lips. Brushing her hair back with her hands and moved across to the other side of the corridor. There didn't seem to be any guards around and only saw the lady at the front desk drinking her coffee. Scully's heart pounded as she checked for the last time and then quickly moved to the front desk. Her steps were light and soundless. However to her shock a guard was coming around the corner. Scully gasped and hid in a small cupboard.

The guard was whistling as he made his slow passing. His steps were loud and unnerving however Scully clamed herself in her refuge. After she was sure he was gone she ran out of he cupboard and made it to the front desk. She ducked and hid behind it as the woman walked to the other side of the room. Her heart pounding, she moved towards the front door bending low and keeping her eyes on the woman. Scully's feet were soundless and she was so sure she had made it. She reached the glass door but suddenly from behind a huge force hit her. Scully cried out in pain as she fell to the ground on her chest. Fighting back, Scully swung her arm round and struck the guard in the chin with her elbow.

'HEY!' He shouted.

'NO!' Scully screamed as he pulled her arms to her back and tied them.

Voices were all around her now.

The woman, the guard from the hall and the other who was holding her down were talking and shouting as if she was an escaping prisoner.

'OK OK! PLEASE! I AM NOT A DANGEROUS PERSON PLEASE LET ME GO I AM AN FBI OFFICER FOR GODS SAKE!' She screamed.

'SORRY MISS BUT IF YOU'RE IN CUSTODY YOU ARE PRETTY CLOSE TO BEING IN PRISON!' The guard holding her shouted and he pushed her head back to the floor and she hit her chin.

'Ahh!' She exclaimed in pain and to her horror she tasted blood in her mouth. 'I'M BLEEDING! LET ME GO!' Scully could feel herself cry.

'Stop struggling and we won't have to do this to you then!' Said another guard. Scully gave up in sadness and let them pull her up. She sobbed.

'What do you think you were doing trying to escape?'

'My partner.. he's in danger.. please.. I have to get out of here..' she said desperately, her mouth throbbing with pain. Scully couldn't believe it.

'Well you can't leave unless you get told you can!' The guard said and started to lead her roughly back to her cell. 'How'd you get out a door like that anyways!' He said.

But Scully was silent. She sobbed into herself and felt her body get pushed back into her cell. She wasn't with it anymore, she couldn't feel her body. She lowered her head as the door was locked shut and weakly, she collapsed to the floor in hysterical sobs.


	3. Three

Part 8

Scully restless night had made her become sick. She had woken about seven times, three times in pain from her mouth and others because she could not sleep any longer. Visions of her being put in prison, taken away from the country or being banished from the FBI were fearfully running through her mind that night. She had been sure she would have made it out, however that was not the case. Scully was distraught. She felt lost and foolish and could not get her fear for Mulder out of her mind. The worst thing was; she was still tied with her hands behind her back.

Her cell door banged open and she jumped. She wondered what she must look like. With a small nervous laugh she guessed that it wasn't like she normally would, all smart and serious. Her hair was messy and her eye make up ran because of her tears. She had hardly slept.

'Scully?' A voice said. Scully's senses reacted and recognised the low voice to be Skinner. She looked up to him and stared. She laughed quietly. Skinner did not look amused. 'Are you.. all right?' He asked tentatively. His face seemed angry however he also looked confused and fearful of her, as if she had turned mad. Scully laughed at his question.

'I'm fantastic!' She said sarcastically, then laughed it off.

'Agent Scully..' He started.

'Agent? Agent! I won't be one of them for much longer!' She said hysterically. Skinner moved towards her and in an act of desperation he knelt in front of her.

'Scully! Listen to me..' He looked at her hands and realised they were tied. 'What the hell did they do to you!' He said with anger and made his way to the corridor. 'HEY! GUARD!'

'Don't bother. I've already complained. They said that I was fighting back and that it was the right thing to do.' Scully said quietly. Skinner stopped and then turned back to her.

'They shouldn't have had to do that to you Agent.' He said fiercely.

'I know. I'm so sorry Sir.' She said weakly. Skinner looked at Scully with despair and went over to her to untie her hands. 'I thought you knew better.' He said. 'Look, they're going to have a conference with you to discuss what happened last night and what they are going to do with you.' Skinner said. Scully looked at him suddenly. She felt fear up her spine.

'They.. they're going to fire me aren't they. They're going to put me in prison.. I.. I broke the law!' She said. Skinner looked at her sympathetically.

'I don't think they will put you in prison Dana.'

Scully stared at him for a moment then lowered her head.

'I am so stupid.' She said. 'I just.. I just needed to get out and find Mulder. I know he didn't kill that man! I know he's in trouble!' She said, her voice growing louder and more desperate.

'I know.' Skinner said with sympathy to his agent. 'However, you have to do this conference. We have to sort this out. You never know, they might let you go free.'

'They wouldn't.' Scully said sadly. 'It's the smoking man. He's behind it all. He's keeping me in here!'

Skinner looked at her with a blank expression.

'I know you may think it is Scully but you can't keep making accusations!' He said. Scully sighed.

'Now even you don't believe me.'

'I didn't say that..'

'TIMES UP!' Skinner's words were cut by a voice shouted from the corridor. A guard came into the cell. 'It's time to go Agent.'

The guard held Scully and led her to a car. It was pouring with rain. Scully had packed all her belongings and she held them close to her as if it was all she had left. Skinner took her by the arm and helped her into the back seat.

'I'll take her.' He shouted through the hard rain to the guard. The guard looked at him with disapproval.

'I have to go with her.' He said.

'I am the assistant director. I am TELLING you that I am taking her from here.' Skinner said forcefully. The guard realised that he'd better not argue and nodded. He ran back to the building. Scully looked at Skinner through the window.

'You'd better behave yourself today Agent.' He said getting into the drivers seat. Scully sighed and put a hand to her head.

'I'm so sorry.' She said in a whisper.

'Don't say sorry to me. I just hope that this conference isn't the end of you.' Skinner said while revving up the engine. Scully felt so guilty. Tears stung her eyes.

'Mulder..' She whispered and closed her eyes in despair. 'What will Lisa think of me if I go to prison.' She said disappointedly.

Mulder felt himself rock back and forth. He didn't know where he was, but he could feel his arm was hurting and his head throbbing. The blood pounding in his brain was making him feel faint and he let go..

..Dreaming, his mind flew to the world which he wanted to return to. There was a warm bright light welcoming him in.. he saw his office and his 'I want to believe' poster. He felt reborn and fresh, healthy and without pain. As he walked into the office he took one satisfied glance around the room, and then his eyes caught the sight of a cynical Scully who was telling him that he was late again and that she had had to face the claws of Skinner alone. Mulder said his apologies however she didn't look forgiving. With one graceful movement she moved to the desk and sat down. Mulder shared a joke with her and he saw the smile return to her face. Scully sighed and told him that he was unbelievable..

'HEY! WAKE UP!' A rough voice echoed in his head. Mulder looked to his office door in surprise. Scully stood up and came over to him asking what was wrong. 'WAKE UP!' The voice shouted again and Mulder went to his door. Scully put a hand on his shoulder and looked at him with concern. Mulder turned to Scully and told her he could hear someone shouting, suddenly a huge searing pain hit his side and Mulder collapsed into Scully's arms... he cried out in pain and she looked at him with concern. She asked him what had happened and lay him down on the floor. Mulder looked at her and saw she was worried. The pain was unbearable and sharp.. slowly she started to disappear. Mulder tried to grab hold of her, touch her cheek, but his hand went through her like thin air. She was gone. The office started to disappear too until he was looking at darkness and emptiness. He wasn't in a suit anymore either, he had completely changed.. the pain came again.. he rolled over and was sick..

'WAKE UP!' The voice cried again. The man was standing over him. Mulder's eyes blurred and tried to make out the figure. Then it came crashing back to him. He was captured. Kidnapped.

'Please..' He said in pain. The man grabbed him from behind and pulled him up into a sitting position. Mulder felt sick again. He cried out in pain and put a hand to his side.

'That's better! I have been telling you to get up and you didn't listen to me!' The man shouted. Mulder sighed and felt pain sear all through his body.

'Come on now.. we've got a present for you.' The guard said. Mulder felt his area come to a stop and the rocking subsided. At that moment he realised he was in a truck and that they had just stopped. He felt himself be lifted and thrown out of the truck and suddenly he was covered with rain. It felt soothing and inviting on his tired and worn body.

'Where... where am I..' Mulder said weakly. There was no answer as he was pulled along the muddy ground. He spluttered in the rain and started to cough, his skin being cut on the stones beneath him. He tried to get up to make his own way, but his legs failed him. The large man continued to pull him along as if he was a dead animal.

Scully sat on her chair and waited. Her heart was beating fast and her mouth ached, but she wasn't going to let it bother her. She had to sort it out.

Scully couldn't believe how foolish she had been. At the time it had seemed like a good idea however if she had got free what would she have done? She wouldn't have been allowed back in the FBI and she would have had to hide. She would have been found one day. Skinner came into the room and was followed by the rest of the board. They were stern faced and unforgiving. She remembered how they had told her to leave the FBI and felt a little unnerved. That had been before she was in this position, before Mulder had been taken..

'Agent Scully. We'd like to start now. Are you ready to proceed?' A stern woman said. Scully nodded.

'Yes.' She said. The woman looked to the others and urged them to carry on. An old man took out some papers and looked at her.

'Agent Scully, why did you get put into custody?' He asked her. Scully looked puzzled, why were they asking her that?

'I.. I did not give information to the board which I should have done about agent Mulder.'

'And why not?'

'..Because I was lying for him.' She said quietly. The board all looked at each other. Skinner looked at Scully dismally.

'Was this to try to cover up what he wanted to prevent Agent Scully?' Skinner asked her. Scully looked at Skinner and thought carefully about her answer.

'He did not want the X-Files to close. He felt we were being betrayed by a man who claimed to work with the government however he was working against it and ruining out work.'

'Did you think this also?' The stern woman asked. Scully felt her heart skip.

'I thought it was true yes.' She said. 'Mulder was shot by this man.' The board looked at her with surprise.

'Agent Scully what are you saying? Who is this man?' A man said. Scully felt more hopeful. 'Why did you not tell us this before?'

'I was worried what it might do to Mulder, if it would put him in danger.. but..' she started, however she felt the tears coming again, 'I.. I think that he has been captured.. by this man..', Scully felt tears run down her face. The board lost their stern looks and looked at her with concern.

'Agent Scully.. do you want a moment?' Skinner said. The stern woman turned on him.

'She is not allowed a moment. This woman has gone against the rules of custody and tried to escape. She even attacked a guard!' She said fiercely. Scully looked at her with disbelief.

'I'm sorry but I think that all of your decisions are being made by someone who has power over you! You have to investigate! Mulder is missing!' She said desperately.

'Don't be so ridiculous we make all our decisions.' The woman said quickly.

'Then it must be someone in the board who is working with this man.' Scully said. The board were silent. The woman's face was red with anger.

'THIS WOMAN IS UNBELIEVABLE! TAKE HER BACK TO CUSTODY AND THEN TRANSFER HER TO WASHINGTON PRISON!' She shouted, getting to her feet. Scully's heart dropped. She started to shake nervously.

'No.. please..' She said weakly.

Skinner was standing also, his face alight with rage.

'NO! YOU HAVE NOT ASKED HER ALL THE QUESTIONS SHE IS ALLOWED RACHEL! HOW DARE YOU STOP THIS CONFERENCE THIS SOON! I HAVE REASON TO BELIEVE THAT YOU COULD BE THE TRAITOR THAT AGENT SCULLY IS TALKING ABOUT IF YOU KEEP BEHAVING IN THIS UNPROFESSIONAL WAY!' He shouted back. The woman looked at him with anger.

'WELL I NEVER..!' She said furiously.

One of the men stood up and banged his files on the table.

'Will both of you please sit down! Let's sort this out properly!' He shouted. Skinner and the woman glared at each other then sat down slowly trying to push off their anger. Skinner took a deep sigh and put a hand to his head. The woman folded her arms and glared at Scully.

'I am only trying to get the truth out..' Scully said timidly. She sniffed and wiped her eyes with a tissue, her heart breaking as she thought of Mulder.

'Agent Scully do you know that Mulder came back here to tell us his side of the story when you were in custody?' The man said. Scully's let her jaw drop in surprise and she took her hands away from her eyes.

'No!' She said.

'He told us that it was his fault.

'He.. he did?'

'Do you think that he would have a reason for killing that man?' The woman said with an angry tone. Scully started to cry again.

'He didn't kill him! It must have been staged! I heard him shout out for help!' She said. Skinner looked at her as if telling her to calm down.

'What was this about Mulder being shot by this man?' The man said.

'He stole three X-Files. Mulder has been confronted by him many times and so have I. He works for the government and has betrayed and mislead Mulder numerous times. We have tried to expose him, but we couldn't. But now Mulder is in danger and he needs to be found. He's gone far enough this time.' Scully said with fierceness.

'Agent Scully, I will not go against your judgement.' The man said.

'WHAT?!' The woman exclaimed.

'But..' The man said ignoring her, 'I will have to keep you from your position of work on the X-Files.'

Scully felt faint.

'You will be working by a desk, answering phone calls from the public. You will not work out on the field until we feel it is time to trust you.' The man said. Scully felt angry however slightly relieved. At least she wasn't going to prison.

'Thank you Sir.' She said quietly. Skinner nodded reassuringly to her.

'Thank you all. Agent Scully you are dismissed and you will return to work tomorrow.' The man said. Scully smiled a little and relieved, she got up and walked slowly out of the room followed by Skinner. The stern woman got up furiously and walked briskly to the door. She slammed it shut behind her.

Skinner followed her out of the room and grabbed her arm. Scully was whisked round to meet his gaze, her eyes were full of relief and happy tears.

'They didn't lock me up.' Scully said.

'I know.' Skinner said with a small smile. 'But you're forced to work at a desk though. I hope it won't be for long. When you have proved it all about the smoking man I am sure that you will be back on the X-Files.'

'Who says that we will?' Scully said, feeling a pang of emotion as she said 'we', as she wasn't sure if Mulder would be there. 'Sir, we have to find Mulder.'

'What do you want to do?' Skinner asked.

'I want you to help me.' She said sternly. Skinner stared at her.

'Scully you know I can't!' He said with sympathy. Scully's face lit up with rage and determination.

'I don't care.' She said. 'You are going to help me. This is Mulder's LIFE I am talking about here.' She said moving closer to him. Skinner took a nervous step back.

'Agent Scully..'

'Sir.. I'm not giving up. You're the only one who can help me.' She said. The emotion was pounding in her blood. After all this time she wasn't going to let them get away with it. She turned and briskly walked towards the lift.

'But.. Dana!' He called after her. Scully didn't react and carried on her way towards the lift. Skinner leant against the wall and then swore quietly under his breath in frustration.

The smoking man was standing in front of him. He could see a large room in front of him. The smoking man looked at him almost lovingly, as if he was his father. Mulder sighed and waited for the large doors to open. The smoking man smiled.

'This is what you've been waiting for Mulder. You and Scully have been looking in the wrong places.' He said with a laugh. Mulder felt anger in his blood. 'Open the doors.' He commanded.

There was a loud bang and a hiss from the pressure on the doors. They were large and metal, about ten feet high. Mulder looked up as they started to open, his head pounding with pain, but he shook it off. As the doors started to open he looked through the gap and saw white. As they opened more they revealed a sort of craft, not as big as a plane but shaped differently. He saw the wings, they were unusual. This craft was more rounded and more unearthly than anything he had seen before. He suddenly remembered... the flash of light... the screams of his sister... the horror...

'Here you are Mulder. Here it is. A UFO.' The smoking man said light heartedly. Mulder stared in shock. He couldn't believe it.

'It's been here all this time. You son of a bitch.' Mulder said fiercely.

'Have to hide it from the public Mulder, not show it.' He said with a laugh. Mulder shook his head.

'You have no idea what you're talking about.' He said. The smoking man lit another cigarette.

'I think I do Mr Mulder..' he laughed.

'I think I do.' He said slowly. Mulder stared at him with anger. From behind him, out of the dark came one of the men. Mulder cried out in surprise as the man tied a piece of cloth over his mouth and gagged him.

Part 9

Scully returned to her home with sweet relief. She felt so comfortable and warm in her own home. She couldn't help thinking about Mulder, which made her feel guilty. She felt she didn't deserve a nice home and a warm bed. She wondered and worried where he was and prayed for his safety.

Heating up the kettle that night, she remembered when she had last been there and when she had seen Mulder. She brushed away her guilty tears as she remembered how she had fallen asleep. She felt so guilty and alone again and just wanted to take him in her arms and tell him how sorry she was and that it was going to be all right. Although her head was full of memories, she was also very tired. Making her way to her bedroom and turned off the lights in her home. It started to rain again. Sometimes she felt that the rain signified the way she was feeling. The clambered into bed and feeling the softness on her skin she turned out her bedside lamp. She rested her head on her pillow and forced herself to sleep.

The morning sunlight was seeping through the windows. Scully made herself some toast and pulled on her suit jacket. She checked her watch and saw it was almost time to leave. She couldn't be late today seeing as it was her first day back at work and she was already in enough trouble. Scully sighed and tried to push her thoughts away from Mulder. She grabbed her coat and brushing past her table she left her home.

Scully walked to her car and opened the door. She heard the birds singing in the trees and couldn't believe how calm and happy they were sounding. The world keeps spinning even when yours comes crashing down. The sweet morning gave her a sense of hope. Sighing, she got into her car and started the engine. With one last glance at her home she drove off.

The FBI building seemed strangely homelike to her and she felt a sudden relief as she walked through the entrance. Her spirits were lifted as she remembered where she had been and the chance that she had now to find Mulder. Scully reached into her pocket and brought out her badge.

'Dana Scully.' She said to the man by the security entrance. She gave him her badge and gun and walked through. When she was told she was all clear she picked up her gun and badge and made her way to the elevator. She pressed on the button and suddenly saw a familiar face.

'Dana?' The woman said in surprise. Scully stared as the doors opened at her friend and smiled.

'Oh hi!' She said. Scully stepped into the lift to join her.

'You're back! I never thought that you would be back so soon.. I was getting so worried about you.' She said. Scully let out a small smile and nodded.

'So was I. I was getting out of my head in that place. Did you hear about me trying to escape?' She said with a slight regret.

'No!' Her friend said in surprise. 'That must have been exciting.' She said and then laughed. Scully looked at her for a moment then felt laughter escape her also.

'Yes… but a little unpleasant when they caught me.' She said. The lift stopped. 'Well, this is my floor.' Scully said smiling. Her friend nodded.

'I heard the allegations against Mulder. Pretty heavy huh?'

'Yes… very. I think that it was staged. He may be in more trouble than we think.' Scully said with sadness. Her friend looked at her sympathetically.

'Just come and see me if you need anything.' She said putting a friendly hand on her shoulder.

'Thank you.' Scully said softly and then exited the lift. Skinner was waiting for her outside his office. Scully walked towards him.

'I've got your work for today and your table number right here.' Skinner said. Scully sighed and looked at him.

'Ok.' She said. 'Is this how it's always going to be from now on?' She said with a small smile, however Skinner did not return one.

'Go to work agent Scully.' He said sternly. Scully's smile dropped and with a feeling as if she had been punched in the stomach, she nodded and made her way towards her working area.

Scully sighed and looked across at the other workers. She felt numb and bored and she felt as if she was a clone of all of the others with headphones and a computer screen in front of them. They were all answering calls about possible problems and cases, and she felt as if she couldn't bear to answer another one. She jumped as she saw a small light on her computer light up. Sighing she pressed a button and tried to gather herself.

'FBI, how may I help you?' She said in a forced happy voice.

'Oh hello I think I.. I think I have a serious problem here!' The man on the other end said. Scully rolled her eyes. The address of the call came up on the screen.

'What is the problem Sir?' She asked trying to sound as concerned as she could.

'I.. someone is trying to rob a bank!' The man said in a hurry. Scully pulled her headphones away from her head and turned towards the other side of the room to where the men in charge were standing.

'Robbery, 34th Street..' She shouted across the room with a bored tone. She felt herself yawn. 'Its all right Sir, someone will be there to help you soon.' She said and then pressed the button to cut the caller off. The men across the room were calling to the officers downstairs who would then call the police and get it sorted out. Scully knew the drill, she'd answered four robberies in four hours.

'What a great city we have here.' She said to herself sarcastically.

'What?' The man sitting next to her said. Scully turned to him in surprise.

'Erm.. pardon?' She said confused.

'You said something to me!' The man shouted over his headphones.

'No I didn't! I was talking to myself!' She shouted back. Everyone turned to look at them. The man laughed then nodded. Scully felt herself blush and turned back to her computer. She felt herself smile a little.

'Mulder if only you'd be here to see me make a fool of myself!' She whispered to herself and then suddenly felt very lonely. This was the first time she had been at work without him for a long time.

Skinner stared at his desk and tried to focus his mind. He felt numb and afraid. He felt afraid for Mulder and afraid for himself and his job. Scully was upset about Mulder and he needed to keep her from trying to go and look for him, though however he knew that was a near impossibility. He sighed and looked at a small pile of paperwork he had to finish. He tried to pick one up but found he had no motivation. Sighing, he made his way to his door and spoke to his assistant.

'Could I have some coffee please Shelley?' He said in a tired voice.

'Of course Sir.' She said smiling, then left the room. Just then Skinner heard Scully's voice.

'I need to see him.' Scully said. Her voice was urgent.

'He's not supposed to see you agent Scully. You're not supposed to be here.' The assistant said angrily.

'I don't care this is important. Please, just one minute.'

'No!'

'What's the problem?' Skinner said appearing between the two women.

'Sir, she wants to see you!' Skinner's assistant said. Skinner let out a small sigh and then smiled at Shelley.

'It's all right, she can see me.' Skinner said. Scully's eyes lit up and she smiled gratefully.

'Thank you very mu..'

'But Sir!' Shelly interrupted in an angry tone. Skinner ushered his assistant out of the door.

'It's all right.' He repeated. Shelley went along the corridor. Skinner turned around to face Scully but she was already in his office.

'Agent Scully I hope you aren't expecting anything from me.' Skinner said as he entered the office and closed the door behind him.

'You know exactly what I am expecting.' She said in a low voice. Her eyes were fierce and determined. Skinner kept his ground and looked around nervously. Her gaze was beginning to make him uneasy.

'Dana..' He started. Scully shook her head.

'Don't. I don't want any of that, I just want your help.' She said. Her hair shone bright and silky in the sunlight from the windows. Skinner sighed and sat down at his desk.

'You know that I can't help you with Mulder.' Skinner said in a timid voice. Looking down at his lap he could feel Scully's eyes burning onto him.

'Yes.' Scully said quietly. Skinner could sense a feeling of anger in her voice. 'Yes you can!' She said loudly. Skinner shook his head then held it in his hands.

'Dana..'

'Don't give me that! Don't say that! Don't you dare! You know just as well as I do that Mulder needs us! He needs us to help him!' She said desperately. Skinner didn't move. 'Are you going to let him die?' She said, tears choking her throat. At that Skinner looked up.

'He won't die.' He said soothingly.

'How do you know that!' She said frantically. 'We know that he's in danger.. what about the hair that was sent to me!'

'I had that analysed. It's Mulder's hair and blood, but nothing else is on it.' Skinner said quietly. Scully nearly fainted again. 'I.. I don't know if he's going to die or not.' Skinner said helplessly.

'I need your help Sir!' She said banging her hands down on his desk. Skinner jumped at the noise.

'Agent Scully,' Skinner started. He rose as he spoke. Scully's eyes were brimming with tears. 'You are not supposed to be here, you are not allowed to be here. You are being watched and observed by people who are above me and so they are watching me also! I don't want you to lose your job in this department!' He said fiercely. Scully stared at him seriously.

'What job?' She said. Skinner looked at her with confusion. 'What job do you think that I have here Sir? I have nothing!' She said with her eyes wide with despair.

'Yes you do Agent.' Skinner said angrily.

'No I don't! The X-Files have closed and now I have nothing to do!' Her face was reddening. Skinner suddenly looked very stern. Scully felt herself lose a bit of confidence as Skinner bore down on her.

'Are you complaining about your punishment Agent Scully?' He shouted. Scully let out a sob.

'No. I didn't.. didn't mean that.' She said brushing away her tears. She sat down and held her hand over her eyes.

Skinner sensed her desperation. 'I am as worried as you are too. I don't want you to get into danger also.' He said.

'I just want to find him. I can't do anything without him.' She said weakly. Skinner sighed.

There was a silence between both of them for a moment. Skinner looked down at the floor, thinking. Scully cried softly into her hand. The clock ticked loudly on the wall. Skinner looked up and opened his mouth to speak.

'You'd better not let this get out.' He said quietly. Scully suddenly stopped crying and slowly removed her hand from her face. She felt her heart skip a beat, felt her whole body surge with hope.

'Sir?' She said in a high voice. Her eyes searched his desperately for an answer. Skinner nodded and let out a small smile. 'You're.. you're going to help?' She said.

'I'll try and find out where he is.' He said in a calm voice, though his heart was beating madly with fear and anxiety. He knew that it wasn't a good idea.

'Oh, Sir.' She said gratefully. Skinner smiled then went back to his desk.

'Now get back to work agent Scully.' He said with his authoritative tone. Scully pushed a loose strand of red hair away from her eye and smiled.

'Thank you.' She said. Skinner nodded. Suddenly the door opened. Scully jumped at the noise then felt herself gather her emotions. She wiped her eyes and sniffed.

'Get back to work agent Scully!' Skinner shouted fiercely. The two male agents standing in the doorway looked at Scully in surprise.

'Yes.. Yes Sir.' She said quietly and with one quick movement she slid past the men and left the room.

LATER

Skinner sighed and looked at the screen. He felt his heart skip every time he heard the slightest noise, terrified that he would get caught. It was late and only the lights in the streets were on now. Skinner was supposedly alone in the building. 'Working late'; he'd called it when Shelley had asked.

He drummed his hands nervously on the desk as the computer searched for any sightings or arrangements deep in the government to abduct or capture a male agent. He found nothing. His eyes were starting to get sore so he took off his glasses and rubbed them with his fingers. He sighed and leant back in his chair.

'What have you found?' A loud voice said. Skinner shouted out in shock and turned to the door way. His heart beat was strong in his chest and he felt sweat gather on his temples.

'GET OUT!' Skinner shouted at the figure at the door. He put on his glasses to help him see. The figure didn't move. Skinner felt himself shake.

'Well, I didn't expect that welcome.' The voice said. It was low and severe. Skinner recognised it immediately. 'Or,' the figure said while reaching into his pocket and lighting another cigarette, 'may be I did.'

'YOU SON OF A BITCH!' Skinner shouted and rose from his seat. The smoking man laughed.

'Now, now.' He said in a mocking tone. Skinner's face was red and fuming. He picked up his desk phone.

'I'm calling security! I'm telling them everything!' Skinner shouted. The smoking man took a step into the room.

'Walter.' He said simply. Skinner stared at him with rage. 'You know that's not a good idea.' The smoking man said. Skinner felt himself shake and tried to decide what to do. His thoughts were messed up and unsure.

'Just.. just tell me where Mulder is.' Skinner said in a wavering voice. The smoking man sighed and lifted the cigarette to his lips again. Two men entered the office. Skinner looked them with fear and tried to defend himself by putting his arms out desperately.

'Stay away.' Skinner said sternly. The two men didn't take any notice and suddenly they brought out guns and aimed them at Skinner's head. 'Hey!' Skinner exclaimed and put his hands up in protest.

'Shut up!' One of them said. Skinner stood, helpless. He was outraged.

'WHAT'S THE NEED FOR THIS CANCER MAN!' Skinner shouted angrily. The smoking man turned to face him.

'That's not my name.' He said slowly. 'Ok, you want Mulder, you'll get Mulder.'

'What?' Skinner said in shock. 'Where is he!'

'He's coming.' The smoking man said. Skinner stared at him with rage. Suddenly he felt an urge to grab the guns from the two men, but he knew that meant death.

'Bullshit.' Skinner shouted. The smoking man let out a small laugh and puffed smoke from his lips. Skinner wanted to break the feeling of tension in the room, it was getting too much for him.

'You'll have to learn to trust me Walter.' The smoking man said. Skinner looked around himself in fear. 'Well, here he is.' He said. Skinner felt himself tense up.

He stared at the door. The smoking man was looking beyond it and he was smiling to himself. Skinner felt sick at the sight. Suddenly there was a sound of heavy breathing and a muffled command of, 'come on' from outside the office. Skinner felt himself nearly shout out for Mulder, but his voice was caught in his throat. The muffled voices and heavy breathing got louder and Skinner realised that the breathing was painful and sounded as if the person was having a huge struggle. The muffled voice was louder now and Skinner heard a cough. It was Mulder. It had to be. Skinner felt fear rise in his chest. The smoking man moved backwards as if giving the people coming towards the room space to enter. Skinner's eyes were wide with anxiety. A rough looking man came into view and he was pulling something along by a rope. But no, it wasn't just something he was pulling along behind him. Limp with exhaustion, with a piece of rope tied around his two hands binding them together.. was Mulder.


	4. Four

Part 10

Skinner stared in deadly silence. The office was still and for a moment, Skinner felt as if everything had stopped, as if all time had ceased and it was just him looking at the limp figure of his agent whom he was supposed to be responsible for, for whom he had to tell to work, and for whom he had to be on good terms with. Skinner couldn't help feeling slightly guilty. He was supposed to keep the agents safe. He stared at Mulder blankly and wanted to kick cancer man, kill him even. Slowly he raised his head to face him. His eyes darted madly and he felt himself shake, not with fear this time but with absolute rage.

'YOU.. YOU..' Skinner said, his voice quivered with rage.

'I'm going to leave now and you're not going to tell anyone I was here.' The smoking man said simply.

'NO CHANCE!' Skinner shouted. The two men reacted and clicked their guns into place. Skinner looked at them with rage, but felt awfully hopeless. 'I don't care if you kill me.' He said. But then regretted it.

'I'm not going to kill you Mr Skinner, I would just like your cooperation.'

'You'll never get my cooperation! Never in a million years! WHAT THE HELL HAS MULDER DONE TO DESERVE THIS! Go on! Kill me!' He said forcefully. One of the men looked confused.

'No need. Come on.' The smoking man said calmly. One of the men followed him out of the door. Skinner was so desperate to run at him, to knock him down and to put handcuffs on his wrists and arrest his sorry ass. But he still had a madman with a gun to his head.

When the smoking man and the other gun man had left the man remaining looked at Skinner with a wild expression and even laughed.

'No movement.' He said madly. Skinner sighed, furious. He looked at Mulder on the floor and saw that he didn't move. His heart sank.

'He's dead isn't he.' Skinner said. The gun man laughed, louder this time.

'Pretty close.' He said with a wicked smile. Skinner let out an angry grunt and made a movement towards the man.

'Oh! No you don't!' The man said and pushed Skinner up against the wall roughly. Skinner shouted out in pain as he lost his glasses. The gunman laughed and then deliberately stood on them.

'Oh.. I'm sorry.' He said sarcastically. Skinner felt pathetically helpless, however the man wasn't small and although Skinner would be seen as a large man, this man was bigger. Suddenly there was a crackle and the man looked to his side. Skinner looked in confusion. A small beeping noise started. Skinner started to panic, what was it? A bomb?!

'Must be time for me to say my good byes.' The gun man said. He took a step backwards from Skinner. Skinner stared at him in confusion. 'It's been fun terrorising your agent here.' The man said in a carefree fashion. 'But now, it's my time to say good bye.' The man said.

'You'll be put in prison before you know it..' Skinner said with anger. The gun man laughed.

'No use havin' a dean man in prison is there.' He said. Skinner frowned.

'Don't..' Skinner said. This man was clear evidence and was what he needed. Skinner felt desperation in his body, he knew the man was going to kill himself.

'Bye.' The man said simply and before Skinner could stop him, he raised the gun to his own head and pulled the trigger.

Scully heard the phone ringing in her ear. It was ringing in her ear then her head. She thumped her pillow and grunted in protest. Sighing, she yawned and tried to stretch. She groaned and rolled over in tired agitation. Attempting to open her eyes she made her way to the phone blindly. Her hand knocked over her glass of water by accident. 'Dammit.' She said in a whisper. Her hand grabbed the phone and with effort she managed to bring it to her ear.

'Hello?' She said with a yawn.

'Scully?' Skinner said. She could tell by his tone of voice that something was wrong. Scully suddenly sat up.

'What.. what is it.. it's Mulder isn't it.' She said with fear. Her heart thumped in her chest. She just knew.

'Yes.' Skinner said quietly. 'He's here.'

Scully bit back tears as she spoke to Skinner briefly. He gave her the name of the hospital and his condition. 'Critical', he had said. She knew what that meant. The word had hit her like a falling rock. Scully rushed out of bed, got changed into the nearest piece of clothing she could find, grabbed her car keys and headed outside in the rain for her car. She could pretend that it had been the rain that had made her mascara smudge, not her tears.

The hospital was white. As white as her cell had been. It smelt of antiseptic and was full of doctors with white coats running around or checking computers, some were rubbing off writing on a white board. Scully saw them in a blur which was making her slightly dizzy. She ran a hand through her wet hair. She knew this hospital well, she'd been here herself a lot of times. So had Mulder. Mulder. Scully felt her chest tighten as she repeated his name in her head. Her eyes were not blinded with angry tears. She managed to make her way to the reception and banged on the desk desperately.

'I'm here to see Agent Mulder.' She said. A young woman with a nose ring and a wild haircut turned round on her chair. She must have been at least eighteen. Scully stared at her with desperation. The woman's face softened and she gave Scully a smile.

'Can I ask who you are?' She said. Scully nodded.

'Yes.. yes..' Scully blurted out. She felt herself shaking as she reached for her badge in her pocket. 'I'm Agent Dana Scully with the FBI Agent Mulder is my partner.. sorry.. he's probably Fox Mulder on your files.. or.. or.. may be not.. do you.. can I please.. please see him..' Scully said in a hurry. She was trying hard not to cry.

'He's Fox Mulder on our files.' The woman said with a smirk.

She said in a whisper

'Are you with those guys?' The woman said. Scully turned around to look where the woman was looking. There were a few agents with dark suits on around what must have been Mulder's room. 'They're with the FBI,' the woman said with a slightly excited expression. She laughed, 'cool.' Scully turned to look at her and saw her start to dial the phone. Scully looked at her with surprise. She seemed so carefree.

'Excuse me?' Scully exclaimed at the rudeness of the woman.

'Come on Scully.' A man said as she was grabbed gently by her shoulder and was being pulled away from the receptionist. Scully looked at the woman with angry confusion. She took a deep breath and realised that she was getting too worked up.

'Sorry.' She said quietly. 'Wait..' She said, stopping in her tracks. The agent turned to face her.

'What?'

'Why.. why are you here?' Scully asked with sudden suspicion. The man gave her a sympathetic smile.

'We're here to sort out why Mulder's in this condition and what happened to him.' He said. Scully searched his face with her eyes. 'It's all right. We're here to help him. We knew that you'd be coming along. Skinner had told us.'

'He did?' Scully said quietly. She looked down the corridor and saw a police officer. Suddenly she was full of rage.

'HEY!' She shouted. Scully ran towards the man, the agent tried to hold her back but was so surprised he couldn't hold her. Scully's long black leather coat flew behind her as she ran. Her face was angry and determined. The police officer looked round at her with surprise.

'Agent Scully?' He said with confusion.

'Yes! I'm Agent Scully! Tell me what the hell you're doing here!' She said. Her heart was thumping.

'Excuse me?' The officer said with anger.

'If you're here to investigate how Mulder killed a man..' She started. To her horror she also saw a young handsome looking journalist with a note pad. He looked terrified at her outburst.

'Well in our view he did Agent Scully. We have to investigate all the possibilities.'

'REALLY?' She fumed. 'Well not while I'm here! He didn't do anything!'

'Sorry, I can't just take that as evidence.' The police officer said. Scully felt a sinking feeling in her stomach.

'Agent Mulder did not kill that man it was all staged! I'm going to prove it to all of you!' She said with anger. The police officer looked at her with a quizzical expression. The journalist shifted nervously on his feet.

'I was.. hoping to.. get a story from you Agent Scully.. if that would be..' He started. Scully was fuming.

'NO!' She screamed. 'This is FBI business!' She said and then to her horror she felt hot tears run down her face. 'Don't you dare write about this!' She said desperately as she brushed the tears away from her face. Her body shook and she suddenly felt herself feeling faint and alone, very alone. With a deep breath she made her way to the chairs and sat down carefully. The agent turned to her.

'May be you could come back in a while.' The agent said to the officer and the journalist. 'When Scully's gone.' He said. The officer let out an irritated laugh.

'Yes, may be that would be a good idea.' He said. The journalist nodded nervously then left the corridor. The officer left after him. The group of agents and Scully stood in silence for a moment. Scully shifted awkwardly.

'Is he.. is he awake?' Scully said slowly. She felt so embarrassed and fought back tears. She tried not to meet the agent's gaze.

'No.' He said. Scully nodded.

'Is it awful?' She said, her voice wavering.

'I..' The agent tried to say something appropriate.

'No it's all right.' She said. 'Which one is his room?'

'201. He's down there.' He said pointing to a room. Scully nodded and walked towards the door. She took one look back at the group of agents then sighed. The door handle was beckoning her in but she couldn't make herself. She was terrified. Scully felt the tears rush to her eyes again and she brushed them away angrily. With one deep breath she opened the door and walked in. Scully had to put a hand to her mouth to stop her from crying out at the sight.

Skinner was walking to his office in large, strong strides. He was angry. Very angry. He knew that Scully must be at the hospital. He thought of the night before, although it was six in the morning now and it had all happened about four hours ago, he was still fuming from the encounter he had had. His office was sealed off with investigators and police all around it. He wasn't surprised, someone had killed himself there. Skinner walked towards his door and was met by one of his friends, Agent Cates or Tommy as Skinner knew him.

'The man's a John Doe. We've got no name for him.' Tommy said. Skinner sighed.

'Rat bastard shot himself before I could do anything.'

'Don't worry about it, there was nothing you could do. The good news is that we've got Mulder back.'

'Everyone thinks that he killed that man. The police were at the hospital.'

'Told them where to go didn't you.' Tommy said with a small smile. Skinner rolled his eyes.

'Sure I did. I told them to go away, but there wasn't much I could do about it. I don't want to see Scully's reaction.'

'The ice queen strikes.' Tommy said. Skinner shook his head.

'She's not an ice queen.'

'I know, but it's a good nick name right?' Tommy said smiling. Skinner sighed. 'I'm only trying to make you feel better. I'm sure she's not an ice queen.'

'More like a fire queen.' Skinner said.

'You've really got a brilliant team of agents haven't you. They're always behaving themselves.' Tommy said with great sarcasm. Skinner looked at him blankly.

'That's really funny.'

Scully stared at Mulder's limp body lying on the bed. She felt weak and so afraid for him. She knew he wasn't well, anyone could see that. Scully took a few steps towards the bed and lowered her hand from her mouth and took a deep breath. Her breathing was fast and nervous. Scully looked from his feet and up to his chest then to his shoulders. She saw that his chest was bandaged up and she saw it stretched from his shoulder to his lower left. She thought that it was a probably a wound that stretched diagonally from his right shoulder down to his left hip. She looked at his wrists and saw that he had red marks around them. Scully frowned in concern and saw that they were rope marks. She was sure of it. She suddenly felt quite sick.

'God.' She said in a whisper. 'Mulder.' She said slowly and took a chair from the side of the room and brought it to his bed. Scully lowered her head in sadness and reached from his hand. She quivered as she reached for it, afraid that he might wake up or cry out in pain. As she took his hand in hers he didn't react. Scully felt tears sting her eyes as she wondered if that was worse.

'Mulder?' She said weakly. Scully looked at his face and saw lot of bruises and cuts. Mulder had a large bandage around his head. A head injury. Scully needed to know the facts. She leant over and kissed his hand and held it tight trying to warm it up. He was so cold.

'I'll be back in a minute Mulder.' She said, wishing he could hear her. Scully squeezed his hand and sighed. Getting up from her seat she kept her eyes on him. Scully turned away with effort and went towards the door. She walked through it.

'Scully?'

Scully stopped dead in surprise. She was in the doorway. She felt herself turn slowly in shock. It couldn't be.

'Scully?' Mulder said again. He sounded very weak. Scully nearly cried. She turned towards the bed and blinked. She let out a cry of emotion as she saw Mulder with his eyes open, his arm stretched out for her.

'Mulder..!' She gushed running towards the bed. Scully quickly sat down on the chair and took his hand that was reaching for her. She squeezed it with both hands and kissed it. 'Oh my god..' she said in a whisper. She held the hand close to her face and closed her eyes. She heard Mulder sigh weakly.

'Scully.. you were just here..' He said weakly. Scully put his hand down to her lap and nodded desperately. She realised she was crying.

'Yes, yes I was. I'm here now, it's ok.' She said in a hurry. Mulder sighed again and as he did Scully looked at him with concern. 'I didn't expect you to wake up so fast.' She said with a small smile.

'I.. I feel awful.' He said. Scully squeezed his hand.

'It's all right. You're in a hospital and everyone here is looking after you.' She said sympathetically.

'I know.. I just.. my head hurts.' Mulder said weakly. He closed his eyes and grimaced in pain. Scully put a hand on his forehead and stroked it gently.

'I was so worried about you Mulder.' She said. She could feel the tears run down her face. 'It's been hell. I've been given a crappy job and I've been forced to let all the investigation to find you down.'

'They weren't trying to look for me huh?' Mulder said and looked at her. Scully sighed and tried to muster a smile. She didn't want to tell him about the fact that he was being called a murderer.

'I see that you're out of that cell.' Mulder said quietly. Scully nodded.

'I tried to escape.' She said with embarrassment. She was happy to see Mulder manage a small laugh.

'Really.' He said, and then grimaced in pain again. He let out a cough.

'You'd better rest. You've missed a lot around here Mulder.' She said gently. Mulder sighed and looked into her eyes.

'It sounds like I have. I.. I never knew.. that so much could..' he started, but was stopped by a cough. Scully squeezed his hand again, 'so much.. could happen to you when I wasn't there.' He said and managed to laugh again. Scully sighed.

'I'm wearing you out.' She said. Mulder squeezed her hand this time.

'No, please don't go Scully.' He said. Scully smiled as another sob caught in her throat. At that moment a young blond nurse came into the room.

'Wonderful!' She said when she saw Mulder. Scully turned to her and beamed with happiness. The nurse looked at them and smiled. 'I'll go and get the doctor.' She said, and exited the room swiftly. Scully kissed Mulder's hand again and held it close to her. She felt that he was warmer than before.

'Hey Scully...' Mulder started.

Scully rested a hand on his stomach. 'Hmm?'

'Is she hot?'

Skinner stormed into the head office and interrupted a meeting. He didn't care.

'Assistant Director.' A man said and stood up.

'I'd like to speak to all of you. Now.' He said forcefully. The stern woman stood up.

'What's this about?' She said. Skinner felt the anger in his blood.

'Agent Mulder. I was here last night..' He started.

'We've all read your report on what happened yesterday.'

'It was last night and it was an interview.' Skinner said, furious. The stern woman raised her right eyebrow in irritation. 'What's the problem Mr Skinner.'

'Isn't anyone going to investigate what I have said about the smoking man?' He said. They all looked at each other awkwardly, then back to Skinner. One of the men spoke up after the silence.

'We.. we don't know.' He said. Skinner sighed. He knew that this would happen.

'What do you mean you don't know.' He said with fury. He took off his glasses and rubbed his forehead again. They all stared at him, the stern woman looked at him with raised eyebrows and her arms crossed.

'We don't have any evidence. You say this man works in the government?'

'Yes.' Skinner said. His voice was trembling with anger.

'So.. what makes you think that he would be working against us for?'

'Do you think I dreamed it!' Skinner said. He sighed and sat down. They all looked at each other again. The stern woman bit her lower lip.

'We have a lot of evidence that Mulder killed that man. He could have been captured by someone yes, but he is still a murderer.' She said. Skinner shook his head.

'What evidence! You have none!' He said. Suddenly an idea sprung in his head. 'I have evidence for you. Scully got given a package while she was in custody.' He said with a furious emphasis on the word custody. The stern woman moved as if she had been offended.

'What is that then?' The man who had spoken before said.

'Some of Mulder's hair with blood on it.' Skinner said. He got up and went from the room. 'I'll go and get it for you.'

Skinner couldn't believe it.

He was staring at the small drawer where he had remembered putting the evidence in only a few days ago. He had put it in there, locked it and given the agent in charge the code. He felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. The head agent came over to him and Skinner realised he was blushing.

'I'm sorry. I swear to you, no one asked for the code.' The agent said. Skinner looked at him and felt that he was telling the truth.

'It's.. it's all right.' He said. 'I can't believe it's gone.'

They both stared at the empty drawer in silence.

Scully took a sip of her coffee and sat with Mulder's doctor in the hallway. She felt her body shake a little from what he had told her. She felt quite cold and shivered.

'Are you all right?' The doctor said with concern. Scully managed a smile and shook the feeling away.

'Yes, just a little chilly.' She said. The doctor looked at her with surprise. It was very warm in the hospital.

'May be you should get some rest.' The doctor said. His face burrowed with concern.

'No, I'm all right.' Scully said firmly. The doctor nodded and sighed. He turned back to the file he was holding. Scully looked at him and took another sip.

'Injuries to the back of the neck include a fracture of the bones and on his head he has been hit several times to by a heavy instrument.' The doctor said. Scully nodded.

'Any idea what it was?'

'It's not really my field but I'm guessing a large metal object, a pipe may be.'

'A pipe,' Scully repeated deep in thought. It seemed strange trying to evaluate Mulder's injuries as if he was another dead body she had to autopsy, but he couldn't remember what had happened. 'What about his chest, why is it bandaged up? Was he cut?'

'Yes, it's a deep slash across the upper body in a diagonal line. I've never really seen something like it. Normally people cut in small lines or just stab the victim. This is almost as if..'

'he was tortured.' She said, interrupting him. The doctor nodded slowly. Scully felt her stomach turn. 'Mulder can't remember much about what happened.'

'I know. The blows to his head must have caused that. You know that Doctor Scully.' The doctor said. Scully sighed and nodded.

'Do you have any idea who could have done this, to an FBI agent?' The doctor said incredulously. Scully looked at him and saw that he was looking very shocked. She sighed and thought how wonderful it must be to be an ordinary member of the public. She was sure that the doctor must have seen a lot of nasty things, but Scully felt she had seen them all.

'Yes.' She said quietly. 'But you'd never believe me if I told you. And I don't think I'm allowed to.' She said, rising from her seat. She turned and looked through Mulder's window and saw that he was asleep. Relief passed through her blood and she closed her eyes sleepily. She felt the doctor walk away slowly as she heard his footsteps fade. She felt herself falling into darkness and found that she was nearly falling asleep. She opened her eyes suddenly and took a deep breath. She sat herself down and ran her hands through her hair. Suddenly she jumped as her phone rang.

'Hello?' She said with surprise.

'Scully?'

'Sir?'

'Scully are you at the hospital?'

'Yes Sir.'

'I've got some bad news and some good news.' Skinner said slowly. Scully sighed.

'Tell me the bad news.' She said.

'I wanted to use the hair that got sent to you in the cell as evidence that Mulder had been taken away, but I went to look for it and I'm afraid that.. it isn't there.' He said with difficulty.

'What!' Scully said angrily. 'That son of a bitch must have taken it! Why does this always happen!'

'I know I know calm down.' Skinner said hopelessly.

'Sir Mulder and I always lose our evidence! It's not right anymore this is ridiculous! How can we let this man slip through our fingers!' She shouted. An old lady in a wheelchair looked at her with confusion. Scully sighed and turned away pulling the phone closer to her ear.

'I know Scully, I'm just as mad as you are.' He said. 'But there is one thing.'

'What.' She snapped.

'The head office has agreed to do a search for the smoking man.' Skinner said. Scully nodded.

'That's good. We know his name though.' She said.

'I know but are we sure he is CGB Spender?'

'Pretty sure.' Scully said. 'It's worth a try.'

'Ok, I'll give them the name. Now you stay with Mulder, I'll sort this out.'

'Thank you Sir.' She said with relief. She felt herself yawn.

'How is he?'

'He's sleeping. He can't remember what happened.'

'What do you mean? He doesn't think it was cancer man?'

'No he remembers that, but he says that cancer man showed him something but he can't remember what it was.' She said.

'All right. Do you think he will remember?'

'I don't know. Only time will tell.'

'Right. I've got to go.' Skinner said. Scully nodded.

'All right.'

She heard the phone line cut. She put her phone away into her jacket pocket. She realised that she didn't have her gun or her badge. She'd forgotten them that morning. Turning towards the window again she saw Mulder move a little. She smiled again and made her way to his door. She opened it.

'Hey partner.' She said quietly. She saw Mulder turn towards her slowly.

'Hey.' He said weakly. Scully smiled and walked over to him.

'How are you feeling?' She said sitting down on her chair. She took his hand.

'I'm.. sorry..' He said slowly. Scully looked at him in concern. Mulder turned away from her.

'What?' She said squeezing his hand. 'Mulder? What's wrong?'

Mulder shook his head and sighed. Scully reached over to stroke his cheek.

'Mulder?'

'I'm sorry I can't remember anything Scully.' He said quietly.

'Mulder don't worry its all right.'

'No its not.'

'Mulder, it's not your fault.' She said, tears welled in her eyes again. She tried to blink them away. 'Look at me Mulder, please.'

'I.. I can't remember anything. He showed me something.' He said weakly. He still faced the other way as if he was hiding in shame.

'Mulder.. come on it's not your fault. You got hit on the head it's obvious that you won't be able to remember things. You can't feel that it's your fault..'

'But I know it was important.' He said slowly facing her again. To her horror Scully nearly burst into tears when she saw that his eyes were glistening with his own.

'Hey.. its ok.' She said soothingly. Mulder closed his eyes. He looked exhausted and upset. 'You'll remember one day. It's not that important Mulder. What's important now is that we find the smoking man..'

'CGB Spender..' Mulder interrupted. Scully nodded.

'Yes, CGB Spender. We need to find him and make sure that he gets what he deserves.' She said and cupped his cheek in her hand. Mulder sighed.

'They'll never find him, or prosecute him.' He said sadly. Scully hated seeing him like this.

'Don't say that. If they don't I'll kill him myself.' She said firmly. Mulder managed a small smile.

'I'll do it with you.' He said. Scully smiled too and suddenly felt so much better.

'Don't worry Mulder. I'm sure you'll remember. It's ok I'm not angry with you.' She said. 'In fact I've hardly thought about it.'

'I just know it was important, I know it. I think it holds the answer to everything that we've been looking for.' He said slowly and looked into her eyes. They stayed there for a long time. Scully stroked his cheek and squeezed his hand. Then Scully shifted.

'Well, I'm not surprised you can't remember because if that's the answer to everything we've been looking for then its not going to be little.' She said softly then let out a giggle. Mulder smiled then kissed her hand which was on his cheek.

Part 11

Scully had left the hospital now and was making her way home. She felt relieved and tired however incredibly angry and desperate to get revenge. She was so angry she almost drove into a young mother with a cot walking over the street. Her car had swerved when she'd seen them and she'd thumped the horn. Desperate to say sorry she got out of the car and apologised to the shocked woman. She'd nearly cried as the baby burst into tears. Scully shook her head and in a hurry said, 'I'm.. I'm so sorry I've had such an awful day. I'm sorry I need to get home and I'm tired. My mind was somewhere else. I'm so, so sorry.'

The woman had said it was all right it had clearly been an accident and had looked at Scully with concern.

Scully was especially careful as she made the rest of the journey home. She was shaky and tired. She felt awful.

Finally, as she pulled up outside her apartment she stopped her car in surprise. There by the door of the building was a man looking lost. Rain started to fall heavily and Scully parked her car. She got out of the car and ran towards the door to get out of the rain. At the door she got out her key. The man looked at her then turned away, Scully gave him a small smile. The man then turned to her again, this time faster and more desperate. He took a step towards her. Scully took a step back in fear and held her arms up.

'WAIT!' She shouted. The man stood still and looked at her desperately. She could see fear in his eyes. 'Who are you?' She said. The man sighed.

'Are you Agent Scully?' He said fearfully. Scully thought about how she should answer.

'That depends who's asking.' She said. The man swallowed nervously. Scully shifted uncertainly. There was a silence. The man looked down at his feet. 'Sir?'

'Look, I'm not here for anything except my own fear.' He said. Scully felt tired and weary, she didn't need this right now. She looked at him. He was small, about a foot taller than her and had dark brown hair. He was of medium build and looked about forty. Scully sighed.

'Look, are you in danger or something?' She said. The man's eyes opened wide.

'You.. you do work for the FBI don't you?' He said. Scully nodded.

'Yes.' She said. 'What do you want from me? Do you need my help?'

'Yes. I do! I don't know where else to go!' The man said. Scully realised he was shaking. She suddenly felt concerned.

'Come inside. It's cold out here.' She said, opening the door. They went into the hall. It was dark. Scully switched on the light. The man flinched at it.

'How did you know where I lived?' She asked. The man looked at her and shrugged.

'The police gave it to me and told me that you and Agent Mulder might listen to me.' He said. Scully frowned at the mention of Mulder's name. 'Where is Agent Mulder?' He asked. Scully looked down.

'He's erm.. he's not here.' She said slowly. 'He lives somewhere else.'

The man looked at her with embarrassment.

'Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you two were.. you know.' He said. Scully frowned.

'I don't know what you mean.'

'Well for some reason I thought that you were a couple or married or something.' He said blushing. 'I'm sorry.'

'It's all right.' Scully said with a small smile. 'We're partners, good friends. We work together.'

'Yes, yes I know.' The man said nervously. Scully sighed.

'What's the problem?'

'Well,' He started, 'I come from Seattle and something has been going on down there. Something really big.' He said. Scully frowned.

'Seattle?' She said with surprise.

'Yes. There's something, something horrible and unearthly.' He said. Scully saw him shake again. She felt awkward in the hallway.

'Would you like to come into my apartment?' She said with a friendly tone. She was pretty sure this man wasn't any trouble.

'No, no its all right. This won't take a minute. You see, I went to the police but they didn't help me. Lots of things go on in Seattle people don't care about. One of my friends.. my.. my girlfriend was..' he stopped and looked down at the floor. Scully's heart filled with pity. The man shuddered. 'My girlfriend.. Sandy.. she was.. killed.' He said. Scully shook her head.

'I'm sorry.' She said.

'Thank you.' He said sadly. Scully thought he was crying but she wasn't sure. His face was low. 'I saw it happen. It was in our garden. Someone had been calling her from work. A man, and she was a bit afraid of him because he was being unreliable and when he talked to her he would threaten her and ask her to meet him.' He said. Scully frowned in thought, her mind going into overdrive. 'I told her to forget it and that it was all right. She stopped talking to him and everything was fine, until he knocked on our door one day.'

Scully looked at his sad expression. The man was terrified. She shifted on her feet and quickly glanced at her watch.

'We had to take him in, we're not rude people and he looked so upset. He needed some help from Sandy and she offered it. When they were talking in the study I couldn't help standing by the door in case he did something to her. I loved my Sandy..' He said with a sob. Scully felt awkward as the man cried in front of her. She put a hand on his shoulder.

'I'm so sorry.' She said softly. The man nodded and gathered himself.

'Anyway.. Sandy and I were getting the table ready for dinner, making a third place for the man when we heard a sound from the bathroom, where he was at the time..' He said. Scully nodded and urged him to go on. 'Sandy ran to the bathroom and knocked on the door. There was no noise. I banged on it and asked him if he was all right, and the door was locked, but suddenly.. suddenly the door swung open with a great force. It hit the wall.' He said. 'He wasn't there. He'd vanished.'

The man stared at Scully. He looked desperate. She frowned in thought and realised that Mulder would have been immediately interested in this case, however it seemed just like another impossible happening to her. Nevertheless, as she always had to do, she asked him to carry on and reassured him that she was listening.

'The next day, Sandy and I were in bed asleep and she got up to get a drink of water. I went back to sleep and then after a few minutes I heard a horrific scream from my garden.' He said, his face white. Tears ran down his face. Scully sighed and looked at him sympathetically. He took a deep breath. 'Sandy was in the garden, her body was all tangled and almost.. almost ripped apart..' He said. Scully felt fear rise up her spine.

'How awful for you.' She said softly. The man nodded.

'I told the police! I told them everything and they didn't believe me, just said it was a normal murder. I know it wasn't! It was something to do with that man! There were no footsteps anywhere in the garden, it was as if he just disappeared and reappeared when he wanted to.' He said in a hurry between sobs. Scully shook her head in confusion. 'They told me to come to you, because you and Mulder work on cases like these. The same sort of murder happened again only a few days ago in my town. It was the same sort of death.' He said. 'That must mean that its the same person right?' Scully nodded.

'It sounds like it yes.' She said. The man nodded and looked at her with pleading eyes.

'Will you help me?' He said. Scully felt tired and ill.

'Of course we will. If you could come to the FBI building tomorrow at eleven. I'll meet you there. You can say you've come to see me.' She said. The man looked at her with huge relief.

'Oh, thank you.. thank you so much Agent Scully.' He gushed and shook her hand vigorously. He smiled a little and went towards the door. 'I hope that the FBI realises what a good agent you are, I got nothing out of the police back in Seattle. It was almost as if they didn't care.' He said, then went out of the building.

Scully took a deep breath and turned to walk up the stairs to her apartment. She shook her head in disbelief and managed a tired smile as she walked slowly towards her door.

'You're going to just love this one Mulder' She said to herself quietly as she put the key into the lock.

Mulder sat in his hospital bed and as the morning sunlight spilled into his room he immediately felt as if he didn't know where he was. He looked around a little and blinked in the bright whiteness of the building. He felt pain pang in his neck and his head. He felt dizzy. Looking over to he window he tried to lift up his arms, but he couldn't. He sighed and closed his eyes again. He suddenly remembered. He was in hospital. He was safe and was in hospital. Relief poured over him and he managed a smile. He then remembered Scully coming to visit him and he remembered the happiness he had felt to see her again. He was so grateful for it. He squeezed his eyes shut as he struggled to remember what the smoking man had shown him. He just couldn't remember. He remembered a warehouse, a large building, the rain and being dragged along the ground over stones. His knees ached from bruises and cuts. Mulder felt the soreness of his chest again as his body slowly started to wake up. He winced in pain and tried to take a deep breath but was surprised when he didn't have the energy. Suddenly his vision was swaying. Mulder felt his heart race in panic.

He turned towards the window, but the light wasn't bright anymore it was getting darker and darker. Mulder knew something was wrong. He struggled to get his focus back but he felt weaker and weaker. Suddenly his head started to ache, this time it was excruciating. Mulder's vision was getting worse and he felt his head thump with pain with every heart beat.

'oh god..' He murmured as he felt sick. Mulder tried to steady himself and attempted to grab the sides of the bed but realised that his body wasn't responding. He felt panic soar through him and then his vision was gone. He couldn't see. Mulder started to shake. He felt so weak. He was disappearing, slowly and painfully. His head was heavy and so painful he felt faint.. may be he was fainting.. he wasn't sure.. it was getting darker now, the pain getting worse..

Scully made her way to the FBI building. It had been sunny that morning because of the rain last night. It must have cleared the skies. Scully made her was through the big glass doors and up to the security desk. She got out her gun and badge and put it in a box. Mike met her gaze and smiled.

'Hey Scully, how are you?' He said. Scully smiled a little and did up her navy jacket.

'I'm ok.' She said walking through the metal detector. Mike gave her badge and gun back.

'You're all clear as always.' He said. Scully smiled. 'Hey, where's Mulder?' He asked. Scully sighed.

'He's in hospital. He had an accident.' She said. Mike frowned.

'Too bad. Well I hope he's ok.' He said with a friendly smile. Scully nodded.

'He's getting better.' She said when walking away. She put her gun back in the holder and her badge in her pocket.

Scully walked with big confident strides to the elevator and felt her boots click on the floor of the hall. Her suit trousers swished a bit as she walked. Suddenly she bumped into someone coming towards her very fast. She cried out and fell backwards but caught her balance. The man was a lot bigger than her. She frowned with anger.

'Hey.. SIR?' She said in astonishment. Skinner turned to look at her very fast.

'Scully.' He said seriously.

'What were you going so fast for.. did you not see me coming?' She said with a small smile. Skinner didn't smile back. Her smile dropped.

'Scully you need to go, now.' He said looking at her. Scully frowned.

'What?' She said nervously. Skinner sighed and suddenly looked very distraught. Scully felt fear in her blood.

'What.. what is it.' She said. 'Where! Where do I have to go!' Her voice was panicky. Skinner sighed again and looked at the floor.

'I'm afraid..' he said slowly, 'I'm sorry Scully, Mulder's got worse.' He bit his lip and shook his head. Scully stared at him. Tears stung her eyes.

'What.. what do you mean worse. What do you mean?' She pleaded. She felt her heart beat fast.

'I'm sorry Scully. They phoned me about half an hour ago I was trying to find you down here. I think you should go and see him for yourself.' He said with great pity. Scully felt a sob creep up her throat. She put a hand over her mouth and closed her eyes. Skinner stared at her. She looked away from him, she had to she couldn't bear it, and slowly turned to face the door. Her whole body suddenly stopped, all the relief was gone and now sadness was washing over her. She felt so worried and realised that she was shaking. Scully started walking briskly towards the door of the building and then got faster, the more steps she took the faster she got, desperate to find him. As she ran out the door Mike saw her from the corner of his eye. He frowned with concern and confusion.

Skinner made his way into his office, part of it was still sealed off for investigation.

'Morning Shelley could you get me a coffee please?' He asked as he walked into the door. Shelley nodded and walked off. Skinner sat down on his desk and sighed. Suddenly the phone rang. He answered it.

'Assistant Director there is someone down here who wants to see Agent Scully but I can't get hold of her.' A man said from the reception. Skinner was confused.

'Who is he?' He said.

'Erm..' there was a sound of rustling papers, 'a Mister Ralph Parenski.' He said. Skinner rubbed his forehead in thought.

'Well, Scully's not here right now. He can come and see me.'

'Are you sure Sir?'

'Yes. Send him up here please.' Skinner said and put the phone down.

She hurried through the hospital doors and up to the reception. The young woman was now an elderly man.

'I'm here to see Agent Mulder? Please?' She said desperately. The elderly man looked at her with a sorry look.

'All right darlin.' He said. Scully felt her heart sink.

'Is he all right?' She said feeling tears in her throat. She couldn't help it, she started to sob. The man cleared his throat.

'He's in the intensive care unit now Mam. I'll call down there and tell them you're here.' He said sympathetically. Scully nodded and took a deep breath. As the man dialled the number she turned away and leant against the desk. She lifted her head up and closed her eyes in sorrow. The sobs were heavy now and she didn't care who heard her. She couldn't believe it. People passed her and looked at her with pitiful faces. Scully held her head in her hands and felt so alone. She couldn't face life without Mulder, not now.

She jumped as the man was tapping on the glass behind her. She turned and faced him.

'They'll see you now, the doctor is coming up to get you dear.' He said. Scully nodded. The man smiled a little, 'He'll be all right love.' He said. Scully sobbed again and nodded a small thank you. She heard a voice behind her and turned to face Mulder's doctor. He stood in front of her with a very serious look on his face. Scully broke down again when she saw him.

'I'm so sorry Agent Scully.' He said. Scully nodded.

'Is he.. is he all right? Is it awful?' She said desperately. The doctor looked at her with concern.

'Come on, I think it would be better if you come with me and see him.' He said. Scully nodded and followed the doctor down the corridor and some stairs. They walked past a few doors and Scully felt so afraid of what she was going to see. She suddenly felt a rush of anger.

'Can't you just tell me? I'm a doctor you know!' She said loudly. The doctor looked at her with concern and Scully felt the tears come again. 'I'm sorry, I'm just really.. really...' She said quietly. The doctor nodded and they stopped outside Mulder's room.

'I know.' He said resting a friendly hand on her shoulder. Scully stared at the door.

'His head injuries have made his body less responsive.' The doctor said. Scully was suddenly horrified.

'He's in a coma!' She said. The doctor shook his head.

'No, we found it out before that happened. He's just very weak and needs a lot of rest. His body has been completely drained of what it needs for over a weak which has broken down his immune system. Some of his brain cells must have been destroyed from the blow to the head.' The doctor said. Scully shook her head in fear.

'He's not brain dead is he?' She said distraught.

'No, its not that bad. He's just a lot weaker. It's almost as if his body is refusing to work. It needs time to get back on track. He can't move his arms or legs at the moment and his brain is telling his body to shut off. It could be like a coma yes, but its not that serious. We caught it in time.' The doctor said. Scully couldn't help congratulating him.

'Has he been waking up at all?' She said softly. The doctor shook his head. Scully bit her lip and nodded. 'He's breathing on his own?'

'Yes. We don't need to give him any help. We just hope it stays this way. You know the risks agent Scully.' He said. Scully nodded.

'Mulder will come back.' She said quietly. The doctor smiled.

'I hope so.' He said. Scully sighed.

'I have so much work to do.' She said running a hand through her hair. The doctor smiled and walked away. Scully put her hand on the door handle. She thought about going in, about seeing Mulder in such a state, but realised it would be too much to handle. She brushed a tear away and forced herself to leave the building and get back to work. It was the only thing to get her mind off him.

Skinner sat in his office and was thought about his conversation with Mr Parenski. He was also smiling because something had happened which he couldn't wait to tell Scully about. He picked up his desk phone and dialled her number.

'Scully? How are you?' He said.

'I'm OK, I've just left the hospital and I'm making my way over.' She said. Skinner nodded.

'I have some great news for you Dana, it'll make you feel better.' He said. He heard the line crackle.

'Pardon?' She said, Skinner realised that she probably couldn't hear him.

'I said..'

'I can't hear you Sir, wait a minute I'm just coming into the building.' She said. Skinner held the phone away from his ear for a few minutes. 'Hello?' She said when she'd returned.

'I'll see you in my office right now Agent Scully.' He said.

'Oh.. yes Sir.' She said in a confused tone. Skinner put down the phone and smiled.

When Scully entered she looked tired and uncertain. Skinner smiled at her and told her to sit down. Scully sat and looked at him expectantly.

'What is this about?' She said slowly. Skinner learnt forward on his desk.

'They've found the smoking man.' Skinner said. Scully almost jumped out of her seat. She leant forward in amazement.

'Really?'

'Yes. They brought him in just about half an hour ago.'

'Well.. well where is he?' She said excitedly. Skinner shrugged.

'Somewhere downstairs in custody.' He said. Scully smiled and felt happy tears sting her eyes.

'This is so good.' She said shaking her head. 'I have to tell Mulder. When is being questioned?'

'I don't know, soon.' Skinner said. 'How was erm.. how was Mulder by the way?' He said, now serious and sombre. Scully forced a brave smile.

'I didn't go in and see him. I didn't want to see him.' She said. Skinner looked at her and was silent for a moment.

'I understand.' He said. Scully nodded.

'I don't want to get all upset again. I'll wait until he asks for me. He needs his rest anyway.'

'Yes.' Skinner said. It suddenly felt very awkward in the room. Scully forced away her sad feelings and stood up. She smiled and Skinner did too.

'Well, could you tell me when he is being questioned?' She said brightly. Skinner nodded.

'I'll try.'

'Thank you Sir.' She said, and walked towards the door.

'Oh wait..' Skinner said as she reached the door. Scully turned round. 'I held a meeting for you today, a man came looking for you his name was Mr Parenski.'

Scully looked at him with surprise. 'Mr Parenski?' She said confused. She tried to remember.. 'The man from Seattle?' She said more confidently. Skinner nodded. Scully smiled awkwardly. 'I'm sorry you had to do that Sir that was my fault I wasn't here..'

'It's fine Scully I know exactly where you were. I've written some notes down and may be you could start work on the case straight away?' Skinner said. Scully raised her eyebrows.

'I'm allowed to work on a case?' She said slowly. Skinner paused for a moment.

'I forgot you weren't allowed to.' He said. 'Well, seeing as I'm in charge of you, I'll let you have a look at it.'

'Thank you Sir.' Scully said with a smile. Skinner nodded and she left the room. She walked past Shelley and through the corridor. She made her way to the elevator and with a hopeful spirit she pressed the number for the basement. She was going down to her office at last.

Later that day as Scully was leaving to go home she arranged a meeting with Mr Parenski for the next day so that she could speak to him properly. She'd made a good attempt at the case but she felt so strange doing it without Mulder. She picked up her briefcase and turned the light off as she exited the room. Her mobile rang in her pocket.

'Hello?' She said, uncertain who it could be.

'Hello pretty red head.'

Scully froze. The voice was not familiar.

'Who are you?'

'Who says that I'm going to tell you?'

Scully shivered. The voice was low and threatening. It was also unnervingly flirtation, in a slimy way.

'You'd better tell me or you can hang up your phone.'

'I don't want to hang up Agent Scully.'

Scully felt her heart thump in her chest.

'Who the hell do you work for then?' She said, fear rising in her voice.

'Me? Well, wouldn't you like to know. I can see you pretty one.' The voice said. Scully gasped in fear and swung round to see if anyone was near her. She was suddenly terrified. She fumbled for her light switch and when she found it the room exploded into light. She blinked in fear.

'Who and where the hell are you!' She shouted.

'Aww don't turn the light on, you'll ruin the romance.'

'Shut up.' She said. She was beginning to feel sick from his manner. 'What do you want.'

'I want to meet you.'

'No chance.'

'Meet me in the FBI parking lot two days from now, at 11pm. I'll give you something that you're looking for.' He said. Scully took deep breaths and tried to think of something that she was looking for.

'I'm not looking for anything thank you very much.' She said confidently. The man laughed.

'Yes you are. You're looking for the files you're missing.'

Scully's brain kicked into gear. It had been so long ago that she'd forgotten. She almost kicked herself for forgetting it, Mulder never would have. One of the files the smoking man had taken had been the one on Mulder's sister. Scully sighed.

'So you do work for cancer man then.' She said. The man laughed again.

'Quite possibly.'

'Then I'm not going to meet you.' She said firmly. The man sighed.

'Well, you won't get the files back..'

'I don't care. I'm not risking it.'

'What would you be risking sweetie?'

'Shut up and go away.' She said, tears brimming her eyes. She put the phone down quickly.


	5. Five

Part 12

Scully stood by the kitchen counter and held the phone to her ear. She didn't know what to say. It had been so long since she'd talked to her. She suddenly forced herself to speak.

'Mom?' She said quietly.

There was a long silence on the other end.

'Yes Dana is that you?' She said slowly. Scully felt emotion flow out of her.

'Yes, Mom it's me.. how are you?' She gushed. She let out a sob.

'Dana? Dana darling what's wrong!' Mrs Scully said. Scully closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

'I've been so busy. So much has happened. Mulder was in trouble and everything seems to be going wrong.' She said and lowered herself down into a chair and put a hand to her head. She felt tears run down her face.

'What's gone wrong? Calm down Dana please..'

'He's really ill. I can't do this anymore I can't stand it..' Scully said between sobs.

She sighed as she heard her mother's sympathetic words and worried voice. She took a deep breath and told her what had happened, starting from the beginning.

A week passed, and Mulder recovered quite quickly. He began talking and asking for Scully after the third day and she had come to see him with baseball videos and some files on the new case. They would spend about an hour a day together, talking about the case and discussing what they were going to do when he got out. He was very weak, so the conversations didn't last very long, but Scully stayed by his bedside as he had asked her to.

'Hey Mulder.' Scully had said in her usual cheery way one afternoon. She smiled and sat down next to him. Mulder turned to look at her and she held his hand. 'How are you feeling today?'

'A bit better I suppose.' He said with a small smile. Scully ran a hand through his hair gently as his bandage was now off. 'Hey, you're messing up my hairdo.' Mulder said. Scully backed off in mock offence.

'Well, I'm sorry.'

'You should be.' He said jokingly. Scully sighed.

'I've got some new news on the case.'

'Tell me.' He said, sounding like an eager game show player.

'Well, the other murder is so alike that it even has the same incisions on it and it's so accurate that it's almost unbelievable.' She said, serious now. Mulder frowned.

'Really?' He said. 'Well that means that it definitely is the same thing.'

'Thing Mulder?' She asked suspiciously.

'Well come on Scully you don't think that the killer is a human do you?'

'Well.. what would it be?'

'Something else, a human who is not a human.. if you know what I mean.' He said. Scully sighed.

'I'm going back to work.' She said. Mulder frowned.

'You just got here!'

'Well, I have a lot to do. And cancer man to kill.' She said with hate. Mulder sighed.

'I can't believe he's there.'

'I know, and I'm going to make sure that he gets what he deserves Mulder. I promise.'

'I know you will.' He said. Scully looked at him and saw that his cuts were healing.

'How's the big cut?' She said looking at his chest.

'It's all right. Still sore but I think I'm getting better.' He said lightly. Scully smiled and squeezed his hand.

'You look better.' She said softly. Mulder sighed.

'Good. The doctor said I could go home in a few days.' He said weakly.

'He did?' Scully said with surprise. She wasn't sure he was ready. Scully noticed that his eyes were closing.

'Are you going to sleep again?' She said softly. Mulder didn't answer. Scully sighed. She was used to this, he often went to sleep quickly. She knew that it was his body switching off and making him rest, but she still felt nervous when it happened. She was scared he wouldn't wake up again. She saw his eyes close and his grip on her hand loosen. Scully kissed his hand and then put it down next to him.

'Sweet dreams.' She whispered, then stayed with him for a few minutes then went back to work.

It was two days later when she'd heard the news. She sighed as she sat at her desk and couldn't believe what she had just heard. She was so furious and confused. She had no idea how to tell Mulder what had happened.

Before lunch, Scully had been told to go to Skinner's office. She had gone and he had told her to sit down and get ready for some bad news. Scully had been completely terrified of course, and everything had been running through her head about what could go wrong. She wasn't prepared for what he told her.

'The smoking man has gone.' Skinner said simply with a very grim face. Scully spluttered in shock.

'I.. I don't..' She said. Skinner shook his head.

'He's escaped.' He said. 'Or, he's been let out.'

'But no one seems to give a damn around here.' He shouted. Trying to calm himself he went to his desk and sat down. Scully was fuming.

'What do you mean no one gives a damn! HOW CAN THEY NOT GIVE A DAMN!'

'SCULLY! I KNOW THAT THIS IS AWFUL BUT THERE IS NOTHING WE CAN DO ABOUT IT!' Skinner said. Scully rose from her seat.

'HOW CAN YOU SAY THAT?' She screamed. Skinner sighed and held his head in his hands. 'MULDER'S IN CRITICAL CONDITION RIGHT NOW AND I HAVE NOTHING GOOD TO TELL HIM ABOUT WHAT HAS HAPPENED! HOW COULD HE HAVE ESCAPED!' She shouted. Suddenly she found herself falling back in to her chair again in dismay. She leant over and held her hand in her hands and shook with rage. 'God.' She whispered. 'How.. how could this happen.'

'I don't know. I'm sorry Scully. But I can't do anything about it. I've gone everywhere asking for help but no one seems to care!'

'But.. but they must care! God, everyone must be working for him. He must have them round his god damn fingers.'

'Possibly.' Skinner said. 'But I can't exactly go and accuse the FBI.'

'WHY NOT!' Scully shouted in disbelief. 'THAT'S WHAT THEY'RE DOING TO US! THEY'RE PUSHING MULDER AND ME AWAY!'

'Scully, you don't know what you're saying..' Skinner said nervously. Scully shook her head.

'No. I WON'T HAVE THIS ANYMORE! I'm sick of it. I can't.. I can't stay here. I have to go.. now.' She said feeling tears fill her eyes.

'Well don't you want to talk about it!' Skinner said angrily. Scully got up and walked towards the door. 'SCULLY?' He shouted. Scully turned sharply and faced Skinner.

'NO! WE'VE TALKED ABOUT IT! If you're not going to do anything then I'm going to have to leave now Sir!' She said in a fury and swung the door open and stormed out. She ran to the elevator and pressed the button. Someone brushed past her and said hello but she turned away. People started looking at her suspiciously.

'What are you looking at?' She said. The agents went away and laughed. Scully was fuming.

As the lift opened she went in and pressed her button. She felt the doors close and as they did she let out a huge scream.

Scully held her head in her hands and felt like she was going to cry again. 'No, not again.' She said to herself angrily. She had been crying too much for too long.

As the lift went down she brushed the tears away and took a deep breath. She was shaking uncontrollably and felt like such a failure. She had no idea how to tell Mulder. It had seemed all right when they had found him and now he was gone. Scully's thoughts went back to when she forgot to tell Mulder to go to work. She felt so guilty for the whole thing. Her tears begged her to let them free but she wouldn't let them. She tried hard not to think about it. Her body was shaking more and more. Scully couldn't believe how emotional she had gotten in the past few weeks, Mulder had such a huge effect on her. The lift doors opened and she rushed out keeping her head low. Suddenly someone grabbed her wrist. Scully cried out and swung round in fright and saw a tall man's body near her in a dark suit. She tried to hit them off her.

'Scully!' The man said. Scully struggled to get out of his grasp. 'Scully! Hey!' The man said. His voice sounded familiar, but she didn't let it stop her. She hit the man on his shoulder and he winced out in pain. 'Come on Scully!' The man said in a voice mixed with surprise and concern. Scully kept her head low and suddenly stopped still. Her heart skipped a beat. She couldn't believe it. She looked to her wrist and saw a familiar hand around it and she looked at the man's shoes. Yes, she knew them. She looked at his suit and recognised the build of the man. She slowly raised her head saw the man's face. She was looking right into Mulder's eyes.

Scully took a step back and put a hand over her mouth shock. She felt the tears threaten to fall. Mulder looked at her with a worried expression. He pulled her towards him and put his arms around her. Scully closed her eyes and kept still in shock.

'Scully?' He said softly. He reached up and stroked her hair and kissed it. 'Scully? It's ok. What's wrong? I'm sorry I've surprised you like this but.. I didn't think that it would upset you this much..' He said. Scully loosened up and let her body mould into his. Mulder pulled her to him tighter.

'Mulder..' She whispered.

'Yes?' He said quietly. Scully let herself laugh in happiness at his return.

'Why.. why are you here? I didn't think that you'd be coming back so soon. I'm.. I'm sorry I hit you didn't I! Oh god Mulder your arm!' She said, her voice rising with worry. Mulder shook his head.

'It's ok.' Mulder felt her body shake. 'What's wrong Scully?' He asked concerned. 'You're shaking.'

'I.. I'm.. I don't know..' She said with effort. Mulder nodded and kissed her hair again.

'It's ok.. its all right.' He said soothingly. Scully sighed and finally managed to pull herself away from him. Mulder reached up and brushed a tear away from her face.

'You're back?' She gushed and stroked his face. Mulder nodded and gave her a little smile.

'Yes.'

'Are you sure that you should be?' She said starting to worry. Mulder rolled his eyes. 'I mean, are you all right?'

'Scully please do you think they'd let me out of the hospital if they weren't sure?' He said reassuringly. Scully sighed.

'I can't believe you're here. You couldn't have picked a worse time.' She said sadly and looked down trying to hide her tears.

'Why?' He said suddenly concerned. Scully shook her head. Mulder lifted it up in his hand. 'Why are you crying?'

'Skinner just told me that .. the smoking man.. he's gone.' She said. Mulder froze.

'What?'

Scully shook her head. Tears caught in her throat and she couldn't stop them. 'I'm sorry Mulder, I tried! I knew he was under surveillance he might have escaped or.. someone might have let him go. We don't know.' She said. Mulder was furious, but he held Scully.

'Scully it's not your fault.' He said, his voice wavering with anger. Scully sighed.

'I'm so angry Mulder. That's why I was so upset just then.' She said. Mulder pulled her close.

'Don't worry Scully, we'll find him.' He said. Scully pulled away and held his hand. Mulder looked down sadly. He took one look at Scully then made his way towards the elevator. Scully looked after him with worry.

'Mulder! Where are you going?' She said. Mulder pressed the lift button.

'I'm going to sort something out. I'll be back.' He said angrily. She watched him walk in and leant against the wall with dismay.

'Be careful Mulder.' She said softly as the door closed.

Scully waited in their office and sat at the desk. She was skimming through some paperwork about the case they were on. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. Mulder had been gone for a while now. She opened the desk drawer and found a small key chain that he had given to her a few years ago. It was a key chain of Apollo 11. She smiled a little and then put it back in the drawer.

Scully got up from the desk and walked over to the filing cabinet. The phone started ringing. She sighed and walked towards it.

'Scully.' She said. There was a silence. Scully frowned and shifted on her feet impatiently. 'Hello?'

'Hello again.' The voice said. Scully's eyes opened wide with fear. It was the same slimy man as before. She gripped the phone tight.

'Look, if you don't leave me alone I'll have to tell the..'

'Are you going to meet me tonight or not?' The man said. Scully sighed.

'No.' She said.

'Well, I really didn't know you were so difficult Dana.'

'How the hell did you get this number?' She said nervously. The line crackled.

'From a friend.' He said. 'Really, I can see you again.'

'Well, that's just great.' Scully said trying to hide her fear. 'Now will you leave me alone?'

'I see that Mulder's back. I know he wants the files back doesn't he.'

'Just.. just leave us alone!' She shouted and slammed down the phone.

She stood there staring at it for a moment. Scully looked around the room frantically for any cameras or anything suspicious. She looked at the windows, the doors and the walls but found nothing. She shivered with fear and nearly screamed as Mulder pounded into the room.

'Mulder!' She exclaimed. Mulder looked at her with surprise.

'Hi.' He said simply. Scully took a deep breath and sat down at the desk. Mulder smiled a little in confusion. 'Are you ok?'

'Fine, fine.' She said quickly. Scully forced herself to smile. Mulder came towards her and sat on the other chair by the desk.

'Ok. Well, there's nothing that they can do.' He said. Scully sighed.

'What did you say to them?'

'You don't want to know.' Mulder said grimly. Scully raised her eyebrows and nodded. Mulder sighed.

'I just wish I could remember what that son of a bitch showed me.' He said rubbing his eyes. Scully looked at him with concern.

'Are you ok Mulder?' She said gently. Mulder looked at her.

'I'm just tired Scully don't worry.' He said casually. Scully looked at her watch.

'Well its 4pm now and I think it would be ok if you went home.' She said. Mulder looked at her in protest. 'Don't look at me like that Mulder, this is your first day at work and you need to rest. This hasn't been the most calm day ever either has it.' Mulder shrugged.

'Well as long as you go home too Scully.' He said.

'Why?'

'Because you've been stressed out too and I think you need to get some rest. You look awful like you've seen a ghost or something.' He said. Scully's heart skipped and she blushed. Mulder looked at her with suspicion. 'Scully, is there something you're not telling me?'

Scully sighed, he knew her too well.

'No Mulder, nothing.' She said with a forced smile. She got up and went over to get her coat. She turned around and saw Mulder coming towards her. He put a friendly arm around her.

'You sure?' He said with concern. Scully nodded.

'I'm so glad you're ok Mulder.' She said quietly. Mulder looked at her. She took his face in her hands, leant forward and kissed his forehead. Mulder smiled.

'Me too.' He said. Scully pulled him out of the office by his arm. They walked towards the elevator together and pressed the button. Mulder was still looking at her. Scully frowned.

'Quit looking at me Mulder.'

'Sorry.' He said. The elevator was coming down. Suddenly there was a crash from behind them. Scully shouted out and turned around to look what it was in fright.

'Oh god!' She exclaimed. She looked down the corridor and saw nothing except a fallen box. She studied the area, how did it fall? Who or what had pushed it over? She stared at it open eyed. She gasped as she felt Mulder take her arms.

'Hey.. Scully?' He said with concern. Scully stared down the corridor. 'Scully?' He said again, this time it was louder. Scully turned to face him, her lip trembled with fear. Mulder frowned with concern. 'Scully what's wrong, it's only a fallen box.'

Scully shook her head and closed her eyes. She took a deep breath and felt faint. 'Woah!' Mulder said as she fell sideways. He grabbed her and steadied her. Scully fell into him and he held her close, trying to keep her as still as possible.

'Oh god Mulder.. what happened?' She said quietly in almost a whisper into his shoulder.

'Nothing, nothing happened.' He said softly. Mulder looked back to the corridor to see if she had seen anything that would scare her but saw nothing. 'Are you sure you're ok? May be I should take you home.' He said.

'No.. no it's all right I'm just.. a bit jumpy..' She said weakly. Mulder let her go and held her in front of him. He looked into her eyes with concern.

'Do you want to go see a doctor?' He said softly. Scully squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head as if he was irritating her.

'No, no.' She said. Mulder stroked her hair and held her still. She slowly opened her eyes. 'I.. I'm ok now.'

'Ok.' He said. The elevator door opened and he led her inside. Mulder felt unsure and worried about his friend. 'I'm going to drive you home ok?' He said firmly. Scully started to protest but then she gave up and sighed. She took a step back slowly and held Mulder's hands.

'Thanks.' She said quietly. Mulder nodded.

'That's ok.' He said with a small smile.

He felt a lot better now she'd agreed.

The smoking man looked down his noise to a feeble looking man.

'She wants to see me tomorrow Sir.' The man said. The smoking man nodded in approval.

'Good.' He said.

'Are you sure that they won't find you here?' One of his men said. They looked around with nervous expressions.

'Of course.' The smoking man said calmly. 'Does she believe you do Mr Parenski?' He asked taking a puff from his cigarette. The man nodded furiously.

'Of course they do. I'm not going to let you down now am I.' Mr Parenski said. The smoking man smiled a little. The man was a lot fiercer than he had seemed with Scully. He was obviously a good actor.

'I am not saying your skills are bad my friend, but I just want to make sure that they believe you that is all.'

'Who said I was your friend. I'm here because I hate those two agents more than anything. I don't work for you.' Mr Parenski said angrily.

'Really. Well we'll see about that won't we?' The smoking man said with a fierce look. 'I don't fool around. I have certain rules.'

'Well so do I. They are ruining my work within the government. I made you that spaceship for Mulder to see Sir, I think I require a bit of praise.'

'Yes, you do. I know you do.' The smoking man said slowly. His voice was very patronising.

'Well, I don't expect to be told what to do. I'm giving you help anyway because I'm the only one here who can hold a character..' He said with a laugh. The others looked at him but didn't laugh back. The smoking man studied the man carefully.

'Don't worry Mr Parenski, you'll get your reward.' He said nodding.

'By the way don't call me that while I'm here that's not my name.'

'I'm sorry.' The smoking man said with a smirk. He took another puff from his cigarette then threw it down to the floor. 'We're going to get those two agents if I have to sacrifice everything I have. Mulder will soon be telling everyone that he's seen a spaceship, little does he know that it's a fake.'

'I'm going to get something to eat.' said Mr Parenski and stormed out of the room. The smoking man looked around to his men and smiled wickedly.

'Don't worry everyone. He'll be gone as soon as we have a chance to dispose him.'

Mulder drove on and tried to keep the topic of conversation merry. He could see Scully out of the corner of his eye and saw that she was worried about something; he just wished that she would tell him. She didn't usually jump in fright at a fallen box. No one usually screamed at that unless they were already on the edge. He looked at her again and saw that she was fiddling with her jacket. Mulder sighed and watched as she nervously fiddled with her buttons, did one up then undid it again. He felt worry wash over him as he saw that her hands were shaking.

'Hey Scully you know that baseball game you recorded for me? The second one? Man there was a lot of funny things going on there!' He said with a smile. Scully smiled a little and put a hand to her head. Mulder frowned with concern.

'Like what?' She said.

'Well the ball went over the side of the stadium, which was funny.' He said with joyful remembrance. Scully sighed and smiled.

'Really?'

'Well no, but I got a smile back on your face.' He said. Scully frowned at him.

'There's nothing wrong with me Mulder.' She said firmly. Mulder raised his eyebrows and turned the steering wheel left.

'I don't believe you. You haven't talked all the way home.' He said slowly and shifted the car into third gear.

'Am I not allowed to be silent?' She said quietly, then turned towards the window and looked out. Mulder sighed and shook his head in dismay. He gave up and carried on driving.

They reached Scully apartment block and Mulder pulled up by the road. He clicked his seatbelt out of the holder and Scully did the same. She turned to look at him.

'You're coming up?' She said in surprise. Mulder nodded.

'Uh huh.' He mumbled. Scully frowned.

'Why?' Mulder put a thoughtful expression on his face.

'Well Scully, I think you're quite hot and I want to make a move tonight. How about it?' He said smiling. Scully rolled her eyes.

'Very funny!' She said with a smile. Mulder pointed at her smile and opened his eyes wide, accusingly.

'You're SMILING!' He said enthusiastically. 'I made her smile ladies and gentlemen.'

'Mulder please, I really don't need you to come up with me.' Scully said, not impressed with his joke. Mulder looked at her forcefully and took her hand, to his surprise she snatched it back. 'I don't need you Mulder!' She shouted then got out the car quickly. She slammed the door. Mulder couldn't believe it and got out the car as fast as he could, slamming the door. He got out onto the street and felt the cold air blow past his ears.

'Scully!' He shouted in protest. 'Scully what the hell is wrong with you!' He exclaimed.

Scully was unlocking the door of the building in a hurry. Mulder ran towards her then stopped as she opened the door and went inside. He stood watching the door close in sadness. Mulder looked around the street and saw that some people were looking at him. He sighed and started to walk towards the car door. He opened it and got inside. Fastening his seatbelt he ran situations through his mind that could explain how Scully was behaving, but he couldn't find any that were likely. He sat in the car and stared at the door for a moment. May be she was still upset about what happened to him and couldn't take having him back? He knew he was being stupid. That wasn't like Scully, but then she was blocking him out a lot. It was his first day back for god's sake! What was her problem?

Mulder felt angry as he put the keys into the ignition and pushed the handbrake down with force. He felt angry and upset but worried too. He just wished she would tell him what was wrong. Mulder turned the car out of the parking space and turned it into the road.

As he reached his home he searched his mind for more answers, and tried desperately to remember what the smoking man had shown him. He found that his head was beginning to ache and smiled a little when he remembered that Scully had told him to go home and that again; she was right. Mulder sighed and got out of his car. He made his way into the building and to the elevator. Mulder tried to think.. he remembered a large warehouse and the pain that he had felt.

He shook his head and pushed that part out of his mind. He ran through the memories.

There was a large warehouse, big doors, metal doors.

The elevator doors opened and he walked out towards his door.

There had been large metal doors, and they had opened. He remembered that someone had hit him, the smoking man had been there and he had been talking to him as the doors opened. Something had been in there, something very important. Mulder was about to put the key into his lock when his brain finally clicked into gear. He remembered suddenly.

'A spaceship..' He said in a whisper.

The memory almost made him shout out in shock. He took a step back from his door, an amazed look on his face.

Part 13

The next day back the FBI building Mulder got there slightly late as usually, but was there before Scully. He was surprised at this because she was normally there before him and it was even stranger that she wasn't there because he was late. He frowned as he saw something glinting on the desk. Mulder went towards it and picked it up. It was a small metal object, a key chain. Mulder had given it to Scully. He looked at it with confusion, something was definitely wrong. Why would this be on the desk. Mulder turned as Scully walked into the office. He faced her with a friendly smile, but she didn't give one back. Mulder saw that she looked embarrassed.

'Hi Mulder. We need to be ready for an interview with Mr Parenski in half an hour.' She said breathlessly. She put her briefcase down on the desk. Mulder glared at her. She turned slowly to face him as she felt his eyes on her back and Mulder saw that she looked terrified. There was an awkward silence.

'Did you organise that meeting yesterday?' He said. He threw the keychain in the air and caught it again. Scully took a nervous breath.

'Yes, when you weren't here have you got a problem with that?' She said accusingly. Mulder opened his arms and shrugged.

'Of course I don't.' He said in defence. Scully nodded.

'Good. Well I'm going to go and get a cup of coffee.' She said quickly as if trying to get out of the room as soon as possible and walked away briskly. Mulder leant on the desk.

'Aren't you going to offer to get me one Scully?' He said. Scully stopped suddenly. 'I'd like my usual please.'

'Fine.' She said, then left the room. Mulder threw the keychain up again and shook his head in disbelief. He let out a long breath letting his frustration leave his body. She wasn't herself, and he wanted to know why. It was starting to piss him off. He sat down at the desk and put the keychain away in the desk.

After a few minutes she came back with two cups of coffee. Mulder looked up and acknowledged her with a low grunt then went back to the papers he was looking through. Scully put a cup on his desk without a word and then went over to the filing cabinet. With her back to Mulder, he raised his head to watch her.

'What are you doing Scully?' He asked casually.

'Looking through this cabinet.' She said irritably. Mulder noticed that she was doing it very fast as if she was being forced. Mulder frowned with suspicion.

'Why?' He said. Scully stopped suddenly and looked at the wall still with her back to him.

'I'm just looking through.' She said.

'Yeah I was thinking before, I remembered a lot of things last night including the fact that we got three files stolen from us.' Mulder said and studied Scully's reaction. She was completely still.

'You.. you did?' She said quietly. Mulder frowned with concern.

'Scully.. what's wrong.' He asked desperately.

'Nothing!' She shouted. Mulder flinched at her outburst.

'Ok.' He said and looked away from her. She turned round and faced him.

'I'm sorry Mulder I.. I..' She said with difficulty. Mulder waited for her to speak, but she didn't. Mulder felt frustration boil in his blood.

'Well, are you going to tell me.. OR NOT!' He shouted. He didn't want to but it was getting too much. He forced himself to look at Scully who looked desperately upset. He forced his feelings of concern to go away. 'How the hell can you expect me to trust you when you're acting this way Scully!' He shouted. Scully felt tears sting her eyes. How could she tell him?

'Mulder, please you know you can trust me..' She started.

'THEN TELL ME!' He shouted interrupting her. The two stared at each other with desperate expressions. Mulder was fuming. Scully opened her mouth to speak but was stopped as Mr Parenski walked into the room.

With the arrival of an outsider their attitudes completely dissolved. Scully let her body loosen and she sighed. Mulder shook his head and then made himself smile courteously towards Mr Parenski. The atmosphere was so tense it could have been broken with a pick axe.

Mr Parenski looked at them with a confused expression.

'I erm.. I can come back in a minute if you want?' He said looking very embarrassed.

Mulder sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. Mr Parenski was talking about the death of his girlfriend again and he was crying. Mulder couldn't stand all this kind of mood, Scully want listening but he could see that her mind was flying backwards and forwards. She wasn't listening with complete interest. Mulder knew exactly why.

He leant back in his chair and put his feet up on the desk. Scully flew a furious look at him and he sighed in annoyance and put his feet back on the floor. Mr Parenski seemed to lose his sadness at this suddenly. Scully turned back to him and he started to cry again, almost on autopilot. Mulder frowned with suspicion and stared at the man as he spoke and started to question how long the interview was going to go on for. He was interested but he didn't like sitting around and doing nothing about it. He liked proper investigations. Besides, he wasn't really happy with the way that Scully and him were getting on which didn't help his enthusiasm in the workplace. Mulder sighed and to Scully's horror he reached out his arms and stretched as if just waking up. Scully frowned with embarrassment and said sorry to Mr Parenski, though he didn't seem to mind at all. Mulder almost laughed.

An hour later Mr Parenski left the office and Scully went after him. Mulder made no effort to move. He opened the desk drawer again and took out the keychain. He started to swing it around his finger.

When Scully came back into the room she looked incredibly annoyed and Mulder got ready for the battle. But there was no shouting, and she sat down on the other side of the room and got out the book of notes she had taken during the interview. She sat with her side to Mulder and didn't look at him at all. Mulder continued to swing the keychain round his finger and looked at Scully. He suddenly felt so stupid and horrible. Mulder stopped swinging it and put it down on the desk slowly. He stared at it and remembered what Scully had said when he'd given it to her. A sudden feeling of guilt filled his stomach.

'It means partnership.' She'd said that evening. Mulder had remembered his lame answer, 'I just thought it was a cool keychain.'

He looked up at Scully and watched her work. She was fast and seemed to be hitting the paper with her pen rather than writing. Mulder sighed.

'Scully?' He said quietly. She ignored him. Mulder sighed again and got up from his seat. He walked to the other side of the desk and sat on it. She was closer now. Scully carried on working. 'What are you doing?' He asked. Scully almost shook with rage.

'I'm working on the interview Mulder which you should be too.' She said, her voice full of emotion. She didn't look up.

'Right.' He said firmly and put his arms around himself, as if it was comforting. 'Scully.. I'm sorry I was an asshole..'

Mulder trailed off hopelessly. Scully didn't move again and carried on working. He felt like going over to her and taking her into his arms, but he couldn't. Scully ran a hand through her hair and Mulder suddenly felt hopeful when she seemed to stop working. She put her hands down on the table and sighed. Mulder waited for her to turn round, but she didn't.

'You're probably wondering what the keychain was doing on the desk this morning.' She said quietly. Mulder was surprised at this comment, 'Well.. yes.' He said. There was another silence.

'I came in early and took it out. I looked at it for a while.'

Mulder opened his mouth to tell her that he had thought that she was late but he stopped.

'Why?' He said quietly. Scully faced the wall and suddenly leant over as if she was ill. Mulder slid off the desk and looked at her with concern. She held her head in her hands.

'I wanted to think about what our partnership meant and I felt so awful for not telling you, but I didn't want to lose you again.' She said, her voice wavering. He frowned with confusion.

'What do you mean Scully? You don't want to lose me again?'

Scully let out a sob. 'I know something about the files, but I don't want to tell you because I'm afraid that I'll lose you again.' Mulder was by her side now, and he rested a hand on her shoulder. He slowly knelt down next to her.

'Scully, come on what is it?' He said softly. She took her hands away from her face and looked at him. Her eyes welled with tears.

'Mulder.. I'm sorry.' She said weakly. Mulder saw her distress and pulled her into a hug. Scully gasped at the contact and buried her head into his chest.

'It's ok, I'm sorry too.' He said softly and felt his own tears verging to fall. He held her tight. 'Tell me Scully.'

'I.. I received a phone call, from this man and he said that.. he said that he had the files and that I should meet him but I didn't want to. I thought it was too risky. He said that he'd give the files back if I met him.' She mumbled into his chest between sobs.

'Scully, I really need those files.' He said sadly. Scully nodded.

'I know but Mulder.. he spoke to me like he wanted to.. you know..' She said and felt her cheeks redden.

'What Scully?'

'He was really flirtatious but in a horrible way. He really scared me Mulder.' She said. Mulder felt anger boil in his blood.

'Did he threaten you or anything?' He said. Scully shook her head.

'Not really, but he said that he could see me and that he was watching me. He was Mulder, I turned the light on in here and he knew that I had. Jesus Mulder I was terrified.' She said. Mulder took a deep breath and realised that she had a point.

'Ok, I suppose you were right.' He said slowly. 'I'm going to have to kick his ass.'

'God Mulder I'm so sorry. I'm asking you, please don't go after him.' She said desperately.

'I have to get the files back Scully. He's got the one about Samantha.' He said. Scully pushed herself away from his embrace.

'Please!' She begged. Mulder shook his head.

'I'll be all right.' He said. Scully shook her head desperately and put a hand on his face.

'No please Mulder, you don't know where he is or anything!'

'We'll wait for his next phone call.' He said softly. Scully stared into his eyes and Mulder kept his gaze firm and hopeful. She felt the tears run down her face and she took deep breaths. Slowly she began to calm down. She lowered her head and sighed.

'Just be careful.' She said desperately. Mulder nodded. She bit her lower lip and brushed her tears away.

'Is that why you were so upset yesterday?' He said gently. Scully nodded.

'I didn't want to tell you. When I got scared in the corridor, he'd just called me.' Mulder looked at her with concern.

'Scully why didn't you tell me you were upset?'

'Because I knew you'd do this.' She said slowly with a small smile. Mulder sighed.

'Scully, I remembered what the smoking man showed me.' Scully's eyes opened wide with interest.

'What was it Mulder?' She said eagerly. Mulder looked at her seriously.

'It was a UFO.' He said. Scully looked at him as if he was mad. She laughed in disbelief.

'Mulder.. come on..' She started.

'I swear to you Scully.' He said seriously. Scully frowned and looked at him as if searching his face. She shook her head in surprise and shrugged.

'I guess I'm going to have to go along with it but I have to say Mulder, I don't believe it.' She said. Mulder shrugged.

'It doesn't matter.' He said. Scully sighed.

'Well, at least you're getting better.' She said and felt tears sting her eyes again. Mulder nodded.

Scully managed a small laugh.

'You're so annoying making me cry all the time. I must have filled the ocean by now.' She said and gently hit him on the arm. Mulder looked up at her lovingly. Overcome with emotion, Scully pulled him towards her again and they held each other for a while.

The phone rang.

Part 14

It was a Saturday and she was tired from the week. Mulder had answered the phone call yesterday and it had been him, the flirtatious man and he had talked to him about meeting him. Scully knew there was nothing she could do to stop him so she decided to do something to occupy her time that Saturday to help her not to worry about Mulder. She shook the feelings away and told herself that she knew he would be fine.

Scully picked up her phone and decided to phone her mother. She dialled the number then stopped as she heard a noise at her window. Scully moved over to it with uncertainty and caution. The noise happened again. It sounded like the window was being tapped. She froze and went to grab her gun. She cringed when she realised she was still in her pyjamas. Scully clicked her gun into place and got ready to open the curtain, her heart beating fast. She moved her hand towards the curtain and took it in her hand. She pulled the curtain back a small way and jumped as the tapping was now banging. Scully froze in fright. She moved her hand again and tried to pull back the curtain. She took a deep breath and with one large movement she swung the curtain along the rail. Scully shouted out and spun round aiming her gun at the window. She stared and took deep breaths. There was no one there. Suddenly there was a loud knock at the door. She spun round. Taking a feeble look at the window and then the door she lowered her gun. Scully closed the curtain again and started to walk towards the door. Her steps were cautious and slow. She bent her arms and raised her gun to her upper body.

'Who's there?' She shouted. There was a silence.

'Mr Parenski.'

Scully paused and thought about what to do. She frowned.

'What do you want?' She asked. Another silence.

'I just would like to talk to you. Would that be all right?' He said hesitatingly. Scully sighed, poor man she thought. She was probably sounding ridiculous and threatening. She made her way to the door but kept her gun at the ready.

'Mr Parenski I'm going to open the door on the safety latch.' She said, reaching up putting the door on the safety lock. She unlocked the door and held the handle then slowly turned it and opened the door. A small beam of morning sunlight shone through the gap between the door and the corridor. Scully turned and looked through the gap at Mr Parenski. He looked at her with a look of surprise.

'Why are you being so careful?' He said nervously. Scully gave him a reassuring look.

'It's all right I just heard something a minute ago. I'm just making sure.' She said. Mr Parenski nodded and looked at her expectantly. Scully was caught off guard.

'I'm sorry, what would you like to talk about?' She said. Mr Parenski looked at the door with wide eyes.

'We're going to talk like this?' He said. Scully sighed.

'I'm sorry.' She said and closed the door again. She reached for the safety chain and took it off. She took hold of the door handle again and put her gun on the table next to her.

But it was too late. Mr Parenski took a step back and ran into the door causing it to crash open with great force.

Scully was thrown to the floor violently from the force of the door. She cried out as her body hit the floor and a sharp pain run up through her leg to her side. She reacted quickly and managed to pull herself up and grab her gun. She spun round madly but as she looked she saw Mr Parenski towering over her with one of plates she had got out for her breakfast. Scully screamed as it came plummeting towards her head but dodged out of the way quickly and Mr Parenski dropped it on the floor with frustration. Scully aimed her gun at his head and felt fear pump in her veins. She couldn't believe it.

'WHO THE HELL ARE YOU!' She screamed. Mr Parenski was panting. He looked at her with a completely different stare than before as if there was a different person inside his body who had removed his soul and replaced it with his own.

'I have to take you away to him bitch.' He said through gritted teeth. Scully held her gun firmly.

'WHO!' She shouted. Mr Parenski glared at her.

'Who do you think?' He said.

'The smoking man?' She asked. Mr Parenski laughed madly. 'Is this what this is all about?'

'Of course it is.' He said. Scully stared at him with fear and anger. She felt her heart pump loudly in her chest.

'So the case wasn't real?' She shouted the man shrugged.

'I'm just one amazing actor.' He said with a laugh.

'WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR NAME THEN?' She shouted. The man smiled madly.

'Bruce.' He shouted back. Scully's breathing was heavy and nervous. She tried to clear her head. Bruce took a step forward and reached down to his shoes. She saw him reach into his sock.

'STAY STILL!' She shouted.

He didn't listen. Scully started to shake nervously. 'WHAT ARE YOU DOING!'

To her horror, Scully saw him bring out a tiny hand gun. She took a deep breath. That's where Mulder kept his spare one. 'Put that down.' She said nervously. Bruce smiled madly. 'I WILL BE FORCED TO SHOOT YOU IF YOU DON'T PUT THAT.. HEY!'

There was a shot.

Scully screamed and fell to the floor, her body hitting a small coffee table. The table groaned as it toppled over and large glass bowl which had been standing on it crashed down near Scully's head.

Bruce laughed madly. He had shot her in the foot.

Blood poured from her foot in a great amount. Scully cried out in pain and struggled for her own gun which she had foolishly dropped with fright. She saw Bruce move towards her and tower over her. She screamed out and tried to kick him with her good foot as he stood in front of her. But he grabbed her foot and held it tight. Scully felt tears sting her eyes from the pain.

'PLEASE! Leave me alone!' She screamed.

Bruce laughed and took out a piece of material. Scully struggled under his grip. 'NO!' She shouted and she thrashed around as he tried to gag her. She struggled furiously but he was too strong for her. She was well trained and could make a man of seven foot fall to his knees, but no matter how hard she tried Scully knew that she wouldn't win with a shot foot and the disadvantage of no gun and being on the floor. She nearly kicked herself for losing the gun and started to feel weaker and weaker as the blood went out of her system.

'LET ME GO!' She screamed and at that moment he pulled her head back by her hair and tied the gag in her mouth making her teeth ache. He grabbed her hands and tied them up with rope. Scully cried out under it but it was only a muffled sound. She struggled as best she could to try and get free, she was so desperate.

'Come on now Scully, WE'RE GOING FOR A LITTLE WALK.' He said snarling and Scully screamed as Bruce picked her up and carried her towards the window. He opened it and to her horror he climbed out and took her with him. They slowly descended down the fire ladder. She could feel the cold air around her head and felt as if she was going to die and that they were going to fall. But they didn't and made it to the ground speedily. Scully thrashed and screamed hoping someone would see her but there was no one around. Bruce had picked a good place.

She cried out as she was thrown into a car boot and winced as Bruce slammed it down. She shivered with fright and started to feel faint from the pain. The car moved fast and she was flung to the back and hit the boot door. Scully cried out again and felt more and more dizzy. She felt sick and tried to grab out for something but her hands were tied too tight for her to move and she felt her hands go numb with bad circulation.

She knew that she would be all right but she also knew that she was going to faint. She couldn't believe how much blood she'd lost. Scully started to cry as she worried if she'd ever walk again.

The car speeded round a corner and she was thwacked against the side of the boot again and pain soared up her arm.

Mulder sat in his dark car that evening and stared at the empty parking lot. He pulled out another sunflower seed from his pocket and nibbled the shell off. He tasted salt in his mouth and sighed. The man wasn't here and he wondered if he should leave. He didn't see what could be stopping him as the FBI building was nearly deserted. He swallowed the seed and put his hands on the steering wheel. He wondered what Scully must be doing and realised that she was probably in bed by now if she knew what was good for her. Taking one last look around and seeing nothing Mulder decided to start the car. He wasn't going to stay any longer for someone who stood him up.

The next day Mulder woke to find the light on his answer phone display flashing. He yawned and got off the sofa slowly. He sat up and reached over to press the button. The tape whirred as it wound backwards and he rose and started to walk over to the small kitchen.

Taking a mug from the kitchen cupboard he heard the tape beep and then heard a message from the lone gunmen telling him to give them a call. Mulder smiled and started to boil the kettle. He reached over to the table to pick up the TV control. He switched onto the news channel. The tape whirred again and then Mulder looked to it in surprise as he heard Skinner's voice.

'Mulder, something's happened to Scully. I think you should get here as soon as possible. I'm at her house. I'm sorry.'

Mulder stared in shock. 'What?' He said to himself in disbelief. He felt fear and worry rise in his blood. Slowly he turned towards the TV screen and watched the horror unfold before his eyes. It was true.

There on the screen was Scully's apartment and a reporter standing in front of it.

Mulder watched with worry as the pictures showed her kitchen wrecked and dismantled. He panicked and looked around the room madly to think what he could do. He had a suddenly urge to do something. He had to help her. He wanted to see her then, at his apartment and tell him it was all a dream or a hoax, but she didn't arrive and Mulder knew deep down in his heart that she wasn't going to.

Turning back towards the TV he saw her glass bowl and coffee table broken. He shook his head with disbelief as he saw the apartment that he knew so well destroyed right before his eyes.

'The FBI agent Dana Scully is missing.' Mulder flinched as her identification photo appeared at the bottom of the screen. He ran over to the sofa and grabbed his coat. He hurried to put on his trousers and a t-shirt.

'It is predicted that she was attacked yesterday by an intruder and was taken from her house. The FBI say that it was most likely an attack that was unexpected and undesired as there are signs of violence in the home.' The reporter read. Mulder stared at the screen with disbelief and felt worry and anger rush through his blood. He was pretty sure it was the smoking man. It had to be. He prayed that she was all right.

Overcome with rage he picked up the control and with a loud shout he threw it aggressively across the room. It hit the screen loudly then bounced off.

Mulder turned and stormed towards the door in a fury, opened it, walked out swiftly and then slammed it behind him.


	6. Six

Part 15

The main door of Scully's apartment building was open. There was a pair of police officers standing outside. Skinner stood against the wall and looked out to the street solemnly. He had been waiting for Mulder for a while now and he hadn't turned up. He sighed heavily with sorrow. The past month had been hell for him and just when he thought it was getting better it had got a lot worse.

He looked towards the door again and watched as the police officers talked to each other casually and laughed quietly over a joke. He looked to see a woman agent of the FBI come towards him. Skinner nodded a hello and walked to meet her.

'Have you found Agent Mulder?' She asked. Skinner shook his head.

'I've been waiting for a while, he'll be here soon I'm sure.' He said.

'I'd like to ask him a few questions.' The woman said. Skinner nodded. 'I think that the charges against him have been cleared by the way Sir.'

'Really?' Skinner said hopefully. The woman nodded. 'Good.' He said. The woman sighed.

'Well, we'll keep looking for clues. I hope Agent Mulder will be a help.' She said with a small smile. Skinner nodded and she walked away back into the building. As she went in a group of reporters came out. Skinner felt the need to tell them to go away; it had been annoying him that the public had even known about the abduction of an FBI agent. He walked towards them fast and watched them light their cigarettes.

'Excuse me, I'm going to have to ask you to leave and whatever you have recorded here today I don't want you to publish.' He said simply and ushered them away. They looked to him in protest but knew that they couldn't say no to the FBI. Skinner watched them walk away and when he was sure that they had gone he took a step into the building and passed some agents he knew. They gave him a reassuring, confident, hardworking smile. He tried to return one. Camera lights flashed from the landing upstairs.

'Sir?' Skinner heard from behind him. He turned and faced a red faced Mulder. Skinner could see the distress on his face.

'Mulder.' He said. Mulder looked at him and sighed.

'Why the hell is this on the news?' Mulder said angrily.

'Don't worry I've told them to go away. They'll be no more of that.'

'Good.' Mulder said. He started to walk up the stairs. Skinner sighed as he disappeared from his sight.

Mulder made his way up the stairs and turned to his left towards Scully's apartment. He felt fear as he prepared himself for what he was about to see and he couldn't bear it. People stood in his way and he pushed past them in frustration. He saw a photographer taking a photo. Mulder stormed towards him with rage.

'WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?' He shouted grabbing the man's arm and swinging him round. The man looked at him with fear.

'Mulder!' The woman agent shouted. Mulder turned towards her.

'Who the hell are you?' He said.

'Calm down, he's not for the papers he's for forensics.' She said taking hold of Mulder's arm. She looked at the man apologetically. Mulder froze angrily for a moment and kept hold of the man.

'Why doesn't he have an official pass?'

'I.. I don't know.' The woman said.

'I was told that it was only us guys left anyway so I didn't put it on!' The photographer exclaimed with fear. Mulder turned towards him again and sighed. He let go of him violently.

'Well put it on next time.' He said, fuming. The woman took Mulder away to a corner. Mulder frowned with anger and looked at her. She was small with short blond hair.

'Let me introduce myself. I'm Agent Karrington and I'm here to help you. I know Skinner.' She said and held out her hand for Mulder to shake. But he didn't.

'I'm fine on my own thanks.' He said. Karrington sighed.

'Look I know that this must be awful for you, but I'd like to ask you a few questions?' She said sympathetically. Mulder sighed and shook his head.

'Can I have a look around the place first?' He said quietly with a frown. Karrington saw his sadness and gave in.

'Of course.' She said courteously and gave him a small smile. Mulder turned away from her and made his way to the door of Scully's apartment. He flashed his badge to people and stepped into the place which he knew so well.

He looked around and saw Scully's bed was unmade, her curtains partly opened and the remains of the broken glass bowl. Mulder frowned with despair. He needed to help her. Suddenly he realised that she was probably where he had been, but he couldn't remember where it was. His heart filled with sorrow as he felt so helpless.

Turning away from the apartment he made his way out briskly and past Karrington in the hallway. She said something to him, but he didn't hear. He was out of the building fast and past Skinner. He heard him say something also, but he didn't want to answer. Mulder ran for his car and started the engine and drove away from there as fast as he could. He needed to think.

Scully felt a hand take hold of her torn pyjamas roughly and pick her up. She tried to struggle away but the pain in her foot stopped her.

She looked down at it and saw that the blood had stopped going out in such a large amount but that it was turning a different colour and she realised that it was getting infected. Scully panicked. She was going to need to have her foot removed if she didn't get any help. She knew it.

'Great.' She said sarcastically under her breath. 'It's so nice to be a doctor..'

'GET UP!' A man shouted gruffly. Scully winced in pain as she was lifted to her feet and was forced to stand. She tried to balance on one foot but she was so dizzy that she fell to the hard floor again. The man grabbed her again. She cried out in anger and pain.

'Please leave me alone!' She shouted desperately.

The man stopped and to her relief he let her back down on the floor. Scully took a deep breath and grimaced in pain. She attempted to look up at her aggressor. She blinked and tried to focus on the man standing above her and saw that he was looking down at her also.

'Why did you listen to me?' She said weakly. The man was tall and had dark features.

'I've been told to make sure you don't get too hurt.' He said slowly in a low voice. Scully frowned in suspicion.

'How the hell does that make sense?' She snapped.

'Look, don't question it Agent Scully.' He said roughly. Scully sighed and felt his anger.

'I'm sorry, I just don't understand.'

'I'VE GOT TOLD TO DO IT THIS WAY AND I AM GOING TO OBEY! IS THAT SO DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND?.' He shouted and was suddenly angry. Scully frowned and looked up at him again. She winced as her foot throbbed.

'I.. why wouldn't cancerman want to hurt me?' She said in disbelief. The man shook his head and walked away from her. Scully followed him with her eyes.

'YOU DID ENOUGH TO MULDER DIDN'T YOU!' She shouted after him with rage, but he was gone.

The metal door slammed shut and Scully flinched at the noise. Suddenly she was plunged into complete darkness. She sighed and tried to sit up forcing her legs to move. She was getting weak.

'Come on Dana..' She said under her breath.

With a moment of excruitating pain she managed to pull her leg up and sit up against the wall. Her foot rubbed against the floor of the cell and left a pool of blood behind.

'AGHH!' She cried out as she moved. Scully felt a tear roll down her face. She squeezed her hands together and grimaced in pain. She let the moment pass, it felt like hours.

When the pain had finally died down she lay her head against the wall and closed her eyes. She needed some rest before someone came back, or she really would be in trouble.

Part 16

Mulder sat at his desk and held his head in his hands. He felt sick and tired with worry and it was starting to take its toll on his emotions. He remembered how Scully had been worried about him going to get the files and nearly kicked himself for leaving her that day. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Thoughts filled his mind and he felt as if it would explode. He knew it was cancerman; it was too obvious. He scanned his mind trying to think of where he was taken but he just couldn't remember. It killed him that he couldn't.

He jumped suddenly at the sound of the phone ringing. He slowly reached over to pick it up.

'Mulder?' A familiar voice said. Mulder scanned his mind then realised it was Langley. He breathed a sigh of relief.

'Hi.?'

'Sorry we took so long to call, we had to wait about an hour to find a clear line.' Langley said bitterly. Mulder nodded.

'That's all right.'

'Mulder, man.. we're really sorry.' Langley said slowly. Mulder sighed.

'I know.'

'We've been looking around trying to find her, trying to access all our cameras and secret passwords.'

'You have?' Mulder said hopefully. He was pleased with their concern. The first time they had met Scully she'd been so sceptical of them.

'Where do you think she is?'

'She's with the smoking man somewhere. I was there too but I can't remember where it was.' Mulder said in frustration. There was a noise on the line while Langley swapped the phone over to Frohike.

'Hey Mulder.' Frohike said sadly. Mulder managed a small smile.

'Got anything worth hearing about?' Mulder asked.

'Well, we want to help you we just don't know where to start looking.'

'I know. Well its got something to do with the smoking man, I'll tell you that.' Mulder said. 'But that's just about all I can tell you.' He said with frustration.

'Do you think she's.. you know..'

Mulder felt dizzy just talking about it. 'No, I don't. He didn't kill me.'

'That's all right then. But Mulder, you have to think about it and try not to be too hopeful.' Frohike said sympathetically. Mulder sighed.

'No, I'm going to find her. I have to.' He said sadly. Frohike sighed.

'So do I.'

The phone crackled again and Mulder was passed over to Byers.

'We're saying our prayers Mulder.' He said. Mulder nodded.

'Thanks.' He said blankly and put down the phone. He sat and stared at it sadly.

Mulder sighed and held his head in his hands. Suddenly the phone rang again. He jumped and stared at it. Mulder reached over and picked it up.

'Fox Mulder?' He said.

'Fox? I'm so sorry I called you at home I just can't get through to anyone because it's the weekend!' A woman said in a terrified voice. Mulder frowned with concern, it was Scully's mother.

'Mrs Scully, are you all right?'

'I saw it on the news.. I saw Dana's house..' She said sadly then she started to cry.

'It's all right! We're going to find her!' He said forcefully. 'Please don't cry, I know it's awful.'

'Please.. please just find her for me.. she's all I have left. She's my only daughter.' She said between sobs. Mulder nodded.

'I will. I promise.' Mulder said strongly. 'I have to find her; I don't think I can go on without her.'

Scully sighed and felt her head throb with pain. She tried to open her eyes.. the light blinked above her. She thought. But it could have been her head. She was sure that she was going to faint.

'Scully?'

She turned slowly towards the sound of the voice. She recognised it instantly.

'Go away.' She said gravely and attempted to sit up. She couldn't, a fell down to the floor in distress.

'Don't worry Dana, you're in safe hands now.' The smoking man said. Scully frowned with confusion.

'What the hell is that supposed to mean?' She said, trying to shout.

'Well, I wanted to take you away to catch Mulder so that I could have you both.' He said and lit a cigarette.

'Mulder? What do you mean you've already had Mulder!' She shouted, furious at the mention of her partner's name.

'I know, but that didn't work did it.' The smoking man said simply.

'Why did you give him back if you wanted him?' She said fuming.

'Because I knew that I'd never get you that way.' He said. Scully shivered. It was cold in the room.

'What do you mean? What are you planning to do!' She said, panic rising in her throat.

'I'm planning to use you as bait.' He said with a laugh. Scully was furious.

'BAIT?'

'Yes, I'm going to take you to Mulder's apartment and he's going to see you and then I will be able to catch him.' The smoking man said. Scully shook her head.

'It won't work.' She said. She smelt the smoke from him and coughed. 'I thought I told you to stop smoking.'

'When was that?' He asked.

'When you stole our files you son of a bitch.' She said angrily. The smoking man laughed.

'Now, now.' He said. Scully felt him walk near and loom over her.

'Get away from me.' She said in pain. Her foot was starting to ache again. 'You say that you want to keep me from harm.. but I've been shot in the foot.'

'I'm so sorry about that. Don't worry. He's been disposed of.' The smoking man said. Scully looked in his direction, confused.

'What the hell are you talking about?' She rasped. Her eyes were partly closed and she lay on her front with her arms tied. The smoking man looking down at her as if she was a rat from behind her. He saw her back and her hair which was messy and dirty.

'He's dead.' The smoking man said, and to Scully's surprise she felt him rest his foot on her side.

'Hey!' She shouted. The smoking man didn't move.

'I'm not doing anything.' He said jokingly. Scully frowned.

'Get off me!' She shouted. The smoking man laughed. Scully cried out in fright as he pushed his foot into her side harder, making her turn over onto her side, then kicked her. She grimaced in pain. 'Please!' She begged. The smoking man laughed again and kept his foot digging into her back. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to imagine she was somewhere else. 'You have to stop. Someone is going to come and find me you know that!'

'Not here Scully. No one will find you here.' He said angrily then took his foot off her. Scully gasped in relief as her body was let back down naturally on the floor. Scully shook with fear and tried to stay as still as possible. Her foot was soaring with pain.

'I need… some.. help.' She rasped weakly. The smoking man's disappearing footsteps came to a halt. Scully opened her eyes to listen.

'What with?'

'I've been shot in the foot, its getting infected. Please, I'm going to be in a very bad condition if I don't get help.' She said weakly. The smoking man took a deep breath.

'What do you want me to do?' He said after a long silence. Scully's heart started to get faster.

'I.. I need some medicine.' She flinched as she felt him come closer towards her.

'Fine.' He said simply, then walked away. Scully tried to get up.

'No! Wait! What are you going to get?' She shouted as he left the room. 'HEY!' She said, but the door slammed and stopped her. She groaned in frustration. 'Dammit!'

Slowly and painfully she attempted to get up again, but she failed. She frowned with concentration as she tried to move her arms so that she could free her hands by pulling them round her feet to her front but she failed as she reached her feet. Scully cried out in agony as her hands hit her foot. Tears stung her eyes. She cried out in frustration and found herself with her hands tied tight behind her back again.

She lay on her front and took a deep breath. She felt awful, tired and dizzy. Her foot throbbed even more now. She thought back and nearly hit herself for opening the door for Mr Parenski after what she had heard at the window. She wondered where Mulder was and what he was doing. She wondered if he even knew what had happened to her. Panic filled her blood and tears ran down her cheeks. 'Please..' She begged. 'Mulder, you have to know I'm missing.' Scully said desperately. She shook her head and gave up. To her despair she sobbed heavily into the floor.

An hour later, Scully was lying on her front with a blank expression on her face. She felt dead. There was nothing she could do, nothing to think about, nothing to do.

She took a deep breath through her nose and stared at the wall. Slowly, she tried to push herself up onto her knees but cried out in pain as her foot hit the floor. She closed her eyes as she toppled to the floor on her front again. She was getting used to the pain now when her body hit the floor, she had experienced it enough times now. She sighed and lay there for a few minutes, her breathing heavy and low. She heard footsteps. She opened her eyes quickly and prepared for someone to enter. The door opened and she heard someone step in. She didn't speak.

'Here's your medicine.' A man said. Not the smoking man, Scully noticed. She opened her eyes wide in desperation and struggled to get up.

'What.. what medicine is it?' She asked desperately, but to her despair the man was walking away again. She cried out in fear and pain. 'HEY!' She sobbed. Scully groaned and fell to the floor again. The footsteps were walking away, but she wasn't going to have this.

She felt determination build up inside of her and took a deep breath. 'Come on..' She said deeply to herself and with a large movement she forced herself up and onto her knees. Her feet hit the floor again and with an enormous cry of pain she forced herself up so that she was kneeling. Scully sobbed as her foot refused and sent pain all along her body. She blinked in the light and trying to ignore the pain she turned and saw the man walking away towards the door.

'HEY!' She screamed. The man didn't stop. Scully turned and looked at the floor and saw a small plastic container with some pills inside. She rushed towards them, falling and struggling along the way and then fell onto her front again when she was in front of it. She groaned looked at the container and read the label. Scully frowned with concentration as her vision was swaying. She read the label slowly and then frowned with confusion.

'No..' She said slowly, then read it again. She couldn't believe it.

The pills that she looked at, that they expected her to put into her body would kill her if she took too many and put her into deep unconsciousness if she took the desired dose. Scully shook her head in anger. 'I'M NOT TAKING THEM YOU BASTARDS!' She screamed.

There was a silence, as her voice echoed around the room. Scully breathed heavily, and felt dizzy. She couldn't feel anything anymore apart from the pain from her foot which, to her great despair was bleeding heavily again. Scully started to sob again. She must have broken the wound while moving. She tried to catch her breath desperately. Suddenly she heard heavy footsteps come towards the door. She looked up weakly with fright. The door swung open loudly and a pool of light filled the room. Scully winced at it and as if she was a spider and scrambled desperately away from it. The smoking man was coming towards her, his steps forceful and determined. Scully started to shake again.

'I'm not taking it!' She shouted. The smoking man reached down, dangerously near to her and picked up the container.

'Yes you are Dana.' He said from above her. Two other men had now entered the room and were standing behind him. Scully looked at them, terrified.

'Oh god.. no I'm not.' She said weakly. Her vision started to sway again. The smoking man looked down at her and then looked to the two men. He pointed to her. The men nodded.

Scully tried to catch her breath, but it was too much effort. She started to sob again and knew that something terrible was about to happen. She could feel it. She tried to look up again and saw the two men look at each other. She shook with fear. 'What are you going to do?' She said desperately. The smoking man turned and left the room. Scully's lip trembled. 'Hey!' She shouted weakly. The two men loomed over her. 'PLEASE!' She begged, but it was no use. They were coming towards her. Scully's eyes opened wide with fear and she tried to get away and move towards the wall again, she felt safer there. The men advanced and walked over to her. She felt them lean over her and she cried out and tried to roll herself up to protect herself.

'NO!' She screamed. The men grabbed her. She screamed again and tried to struggle out of their grip. They turned her over with ease as her attempt to struggle was extremely weak. Scully begged them to stop, and begged them to leave her alone, but they held her down facing the ceiling. One of them reached towards her face, Scully cried out and tossed her head around but he grabbed her face roughly.

'Stop it!' He shouted. Scully tried to fight back but she couldn't and to her horror he forced her mouth apart. Scully chocked and felt sick. The man laughed and looked to the other man who was holding her down. The man looked back at her slowly and looked into Scully's wide, terrified eyes. He stared into them menacingly and then to Scully's horror, he forced the first few pills down her throat.

It was dark and cold. The trees swayed in the wind which blew down on the apartment building. Cars sped past, oblivious to what had happened. Up in his apartment Mulder was glued to his computer screen and was desperately trying to find some information about where the smoking man was. He'd been trying to remember where he'd been the whole day but it hadn't worked. He just couldn't remember. Mulder sighed as he failed again to find any information. He felt anger rage inside of him and with a frustrated shout he hit the computer.

He stopped, and took deep breaths. Running a hand through his hair he sat back in his chair and turned his head to the ceiling, desperately trying to remember. Mulder felt his stomach growl. With a sigh he got up and walked over to his kitchen. It was then that he realised that he hadn't put the lights on. He walked over to the wall and turned them on.

The room exploded into light and Mulder blinked in shock. He put a hand to his eyes and took a deep breath. He had been getting so engrossed with his work that he hadn't realised that he had been in the dark. Getting back into reality he made his way towards the fridge and got out some food. Mulder started chopping up some tomatoes. Suddenly there was a loud bang from outside in the hall. Mulder shouted out in shock and the knife slipped and cut into his flesh.

'Ow!' He exclaimed. Mulder looked down at his hand and saw a small cut. The blood was spilling onto the cutting board. He sighed with anger and while holding it with his other hand, he made his way into the bathroom. He switched on the light and went to the medicine cabinet. Mulder saw himself in the mirror and saw that he looked tired and worn.

He opened the medicine cabinet and got out roll of bandage. Mulder wrapped a small piece around his hand then cut the roll. When he'd finished dressing the cut he closed the cabinet, replaced the roll and left his bathroom.

Mulder went into the main room of his apartment again. He looked around, curious. What had that noise been? He heard a small rustle and some footsteps from outside his door. Mulder reacted quickly. He went over to his table and grabbed his gun then went over to his sofa and sat down, prepared for anything that would come through his door.

Quarter of an hour later the noises had stopped. Mulder sat on his sofa and waited for anything else to happen. He heard footsteps. He turned towards the door and watched as he saw the shadow of someone in the hall in the gap under the door. Mulder felt the adrenaline pump in his body as he waited. The shadow moved and then something was put under his door. Mulder waited, fascinated then slowly got up and moved towards the door when the shadow and footsteps had disappeared. He gazed down at a small piece of paper. Mulder bent over and picked it up.

He turned it over. It was a worn piece of paper and had scribbled, black writing on it. Mulder strained his eyes to read it.

_If you'd never started the X-Files none of this would have happened. You have no one else to blame but yourself. Scully is with me. _

Mulder frowned. He read the letter again and guessed that it was from the smoking man. But he wasn't sure. It could have been anyone. He felt furious. The words, 'Scully is with me' ran through his mind over and over. Mulder put the letter to his nose and sniffed it.

Smoke.

Cigarette smoke.

Mulder was furious. He tore the letter apart and threw it on the floor. He took his gun up again and clicked it into place. With one huge movement he grabbed the door handle and threw the door open, not bothering to close it and ran out into the corridor.

He looked around. There was no one.

Mulder shouted in frustration and was mad that he hadn't done anything when he had been right there.. outside his own door. He felt guilt run through his blood. This was all his fault, may be the smoking man was right… no. Mulder pushed that thought away.

'Son of a bitch!' He shouted out. 'SCULLY!'

Mulder looked around desperately. He sighed. There was nothing he could do now. He went back into his flat in despair.

Slamming the door shut behind him he went back to his sofa, lay down, buried his head in his hands and did something that he hardly ever did. He cried.

The smoking man sat in the back of the car and smoked his cigarette. The man in the front looked back to him in the mirror.

'How much longer are we going to wait?'

'It's nearly time. I'm sure that he's completely devastated by now.' The smoking man said, looking up at Mulder's apartment building and the light coming from his window.

'What about the girl?' The man asked, turning and looking into the back seat where Scully sat forced upright. The smoking man looked across at her.

'She'll be coming too. Don't worry she won't be waking up soon.' He said. The man nodded and stared at Scully's body. Her skin was pale and she looked lifeless. Her hair dark with dirt and sweat and her once white silk pyjamas were now grey and torn. Blood stained her trousers. The man couldn't help feeling guilty. The smoking man suddenly looked across as him.

'Why are you looking at her like that?' He snapped. The man jumped and turned his gaze to the smoking man nervously.

'She looks dead.' He said. The smoking man managed a little smile.

'I knew you weren't ready for this job.'

'No!' The man said desperately. 'No Sir I am!' He pleaded. The smoking man laughed.

'Don't worry, I'm not going to kill you.' He said, teasing him. The man's heart skipped a beat and couldn't help wondering if he was telling the truth or not.

'I need to get back somehow don't I, and I can't get anywhere without a driver.'

The man swallowed nervously.

Mulder sat on the sofa and stared at the coffee table mindlessly. He couldn't stop thinking about Scully and terrible images were filling his mind and making him more and more sorrowful. He took a deep breath and tried to gather himself. He rose from the sofa and went towards the kitchen again. He saw the blood on the chopping board and decided to leave food for the night. Mulder went back to the sofa and lifted the television control. He had to get his mind off Scully for a second. Just when he was about to switch it on there was a bang from outside. Mulder froze. He dropped the control and turned towards the door, anger burning in his blood. He rose and took his gun off the table, determined to shoot whoever was there. But what if it was Scully? What would he do? Mulder calmed himself mentally and went over to the door. There was another thump and footsteps. He held himself back, he was so tempted to open the door and shoot whoever was there. He didn't care anymore.

Suddenly he heard a faint murmur of male voices. Mulder clicked his gun into place and aimed it at the door. Then there was a silence. He waited.

The door crashed open and the light from the hall came in. Mulder raised his gun.

'I'M READY FOR YOU, YOU SON OF A.. .' He was stopped.

Mulder stared at the doorway in shock. There she was. She was there in front of him. At first he didn't recognise her. She stood as if she was propped up. Her eyes were closed.

'Scully?' Mulder gasped and shook his head in disbelief. He felt emotion pump through him and then ran towards her desperately, holding his arms out to catch her or take her in. But as he neared her she started to fall forward as if she was a piece of wood. He stared in shock and ran towards her faster. She fell into his arms.

'Scully? Scully?' He asked in fear. She lay limp in his arms. Mulder felt fury run through his blood. He looked up into the corridor and saw that it was empty. Mulder turned back towards her and reached over to her face. He stroked her cheek.

'You're freezing!' He exclaimed with concern. Mulder sighed and pulled her into his apartment and closed the door. He felt so much better now she was there with him. He looked down at her and lay her on the floor. Mulder searched her face trying to see if she was moving, but she wasn't. He reached to her neck and tried to listen for her pulse. He was terrified. He couldn't find it.

'Oh my god..' He said, panicking and felt for her pulse again. He lifted her up slightly so that she was resting on his knee. Mulder froze and waited for the pulse. Just when he had given up hope he felt a tiny pressure on his fingers. He felt her pulse, then waited for the next heart beat. It was deathly slow. Dangerously slow. Mulder shook his head in shock.

'Scully?' He asked desperately. 'Scully? Can you hear me?'

He felt angry tears sting his eyes and he saw that she was pale. He touched her hair and felt its heavy weight and saw that it was extremely dirty. He frowned with concern and looked at her worn pyjamas. Slowly he moved his eyes down her legs and saw blood at the bottom of the trousers. Mulder panicked. He was now looking at her foot, which was covered in blood and was swelling. Mulder froze in fear. He looked closer.

'Scully..' He gushed with emotion as he saw that she had been shot. Mulder took her gently by the arms and pulled her close to him holding her tight. He couldn't believe it.

'It's ok Scully..' He said softly.

Mulder looked at her face again and stroked it gently. Slowly he let her down on the floor and hurried towards the phone.

'Hello? This is Fox Mulder with the FBI I need an ambulance right now!' He shouted in panic. He felt tears threaten to fall and anger boil in his blood. He gave his address.

When he had called the ambulance he went back to Scully quickly and held her hand. To his relief he saw that she was breathing lightly.

'Scully.. come on..' He pleaded. 'An ambulance is coming.'

There was a sound of footsteps again. Mulder turned sharply and grabbed his gun. He stood up slowly and made his way towards the closed door and put his hand to the door handle … he took a deep breath.

'Take this you bastard..' Mulder said under his breath.

He shouted out and pulled the door open.

But with great force the man rammed into it and it came crashing down off the hinges onto him.

Mulder cried out in pain and felt as if he was drifting away until he couldn't see anything anymore. Then he felt his body go.. and then, with one last attempt to fight back.. he fell unconscious.

Part 17

The door had been put against the wall in a sympathetic manner. The light on the desk was still on although the morning sunlight was now spilling into the room. It seemed too bright and welcoming for the occasion.

Photographers snapped pictures while they stepped carefully over the wreckage. Assistant Director Skinner stood in the kitchen of Mulder's apartment and sighed heavily. He leant over the worktop and held his head deep in his hands. A young agent came over to him and put a friendly hand on his shoulder.

'Sir, I'm sorry.' He said sympathetically. Skinner shook his head and almost shook with rage.

'I don't want to hang around here when two of my agents have gone!'

'I.. I'm sorry Sir. We'll start looking straight away.' The agent said, taken back by Skinner's fury. He walked away nervously and over to a police officer. Skinner looked at him angrily and took a deep breath trying to calm himself. He couldn't believe it. He was so shocked that something so awful had happened. He was furious.

'Get out of here!' Skinner said, advancing on a photographer. He glared at the police officer.

'I thought I told you last time that reporters weren't allowed here! This is an FBI case!' He shouted. The officer nodded and moved the photographers out of the apartment. Skinner looked around at the stunned Agents and officers. 'What are you looking at! Get a move on!' He shouted, and they dispersed nervously into a hurry of work.

Mulder tried to open his eyes but they were heavy and painful to move. He blinked slowly and saw glimpses of light. He heard a cry from near him and wondered who it was. It sounded desperate and as if the person was in pain. Mulder tried to raise himself up from the floor but pain soared through his temples and blinded him. Slowly he turned his head to the side and as he blinked to his horror he saw Scully lying down on the floor and her body moved severely with every cry that came from her. He couldn't see anyone hitting her, and he realised slowly that they were alone in the room. Mulder tried desperately to get up and go over to her, but he couldn't. He shouted out weakly in despair as Scully's body moved violently again and she winced in pain. He stared at her with shock and felt his heart drum loudly in his chest. Suddenly the door opened and someone walked in. Mulder blinked and tried to focus on what he was seeing and he saw a tall man walk towards him. He recognised him instantly. Mr Parkenski. Mulder cried out in anger and tried to move across the room to attack him. Mr Parenski stopped and walked over to him.

'Hello Agent Mulder.' He said over Scully's cries. Mulder grunted angrily. 'Recognise me?' He said with a smile then kicked Mulder in the side. Mulder grunted and closed his eyes in pain. 'My name's Bruce by the way.' He said with a laugh.

Bruce walked over to Scully and stood over her. Her body moved violently and she started to shake as if she was having a fit. Bruce started to laugh.

'Does that hurt?' He asked. Scully's body jolted in reply and she let out a weak cry. 'Those are the side affects of the drug Dana, don't worry they won't last much longer. We won't be needing you much longer anyway.' He said looking across as the weak body of Mulder. Bruce smiled a little then put a hand on Scully's hair. 'We'll let you free soon.' He said quietly to her then got up. Scully jolted again and let out a sob. He frowned and looked down into her face and lifted up her eyelid. Her eyes had rolled back into her head and were white. Bruce sighed and walked away from them. 'Nasty drug that, I tried to tell them not to give it to you but they wouldn't listen. It won't be much longer now until it wears off though.' He said with a smile. Bruce looked across at Mulder and glared at him. 'I'll be coming back for you.'

That afternoon Skinner walked to his office sadly keeping his head low. He felt anger flow in his veins. The secretary smiled at him but he didn't return it. He sighed and opened his door quickly and stormed inside slamming it behind him. With one long deep sigh he sat down on his chair and leant back holding his head in his hands in desperation. He shook his head then rested on his desk. He lay there for a while, but then he hit the desk violently with his fist.

'Sir?' The secretary came in nervously and spoke in a timid voice. Skinner shook off his rage and shakily put in his glasses.

'Yes.. yes Shelly I'm sorry.' He said weakly. She nodded.

'Sir there's something going on outside, by the door of the headquarters. Downstairs called up and asked me to tell you to come down straight away.' She said quietly. Skinner looked at her.

'What is it?' He asked with curiosity. The secretary shifted on her feet and blushed a little.

'They think that Agent Scully is down there.'

Scully heard distant noise and voices. She closed her eyes shut to try and block them away and started to shake nervously. The pain she was feeling was unbearable, like her body had been completely taken apart then put together again. She felt weak and distant, like she was somewhere else. Her mind was starting to waver and she had visions of different people in her life like her mother, her brother and Mulder, her friends, her days at university and FBI training college. She tried to curl herself up into a protective ball to hide everything around her.

Skinner ran out of the office and down the stairs quickly. He was desperate to see what had happened and he prayed that it was Scully downstairs and that she was all right. Agents looked at him in an understanding way and some glared at him as he rushed past them.

When he reached the ground floor he ran across the large entrance hall and suddenly was met by a paramedic and almost crashed into him.

'Assistant Director!' The paramedic said trying to stop him. Skinner looked at him with a desperate expression.

'Where is she?' He asked trying to sound authoritive.

The paramedic took him by the arm and led him over to a small room on the ground floor. 'Where are we going?'

'She was outside on the steps.' The paramedic said. 'The people on the street saw her, it isn't good.'

'What do you mean?'

'She's in here.' The paramedic said sympathetically to Skinner and opened the door of the room.

Skinner stepped inside and looked around with worry. There were a few paramedics there and some agents who were helping. Scully lay on a sofa and the paramedics were helping her and she wore an oxygen mask. Skinner looked at her closely and felt his stomach turn when he saw how pale she was, as if she hadn't eaten for weeks and as if she was a drug addict with large black rings around her eyes. She moved a little and her eyes fluttered. The paramedic came to his side.

'What.. what's wrong with her?' Skinner said in shock.

'We think that she must have been drugged because she had extremely high blood pressure and her body is worn and tired. Her sugar levels are exceedingly low. We have to take her to the hospital to sort out her foot also. There's severe infection that we need to treat straight away.'

'What? What's wrong with her foot..' But Skinner stopped as he saw Scully's foot, deeply mangled and covered in dried blood. He put a hand to his mouth to stop himself from being sick. 'Oh my god..'

'We have to get her to the hospital now. The shot is deep and the infection is making her very ill.' The paramedic said seriously putting a hand on Skinner's shoulder. Scully's head turned a little and their eyes met. She lifted an arm and reached out to him.

'Yes.. yes take her.' He said weakly and wiping a tear away from his eye and burying his face in his hands, he turned away from the sight of her and faced the wall.

Scully lay on her hospital bed silently sleeping under the anaesthetic. Her mother looked at her through the glass window with sad tired eyes. She'd been with her all night and she'd seen her go into the operating theatre, taken her hand tenderly when she had reached out for her, and cried with her.

Mrs Scully lowered her head and closed her eyes, wavering a little on her exhausted feet. She shook her head to try and shake the tiredness off then looked back to her daughter.

'Mrs Scully?' A voice said from behind her. Mrs Scully turned quickly in surprise.

'Hello.' She said quietly. Skinner looked at her sympathetically.

'Is she all right?' He asked.

'She's sleeping, but she should be all right when she comes out of it. They've tried to get most of the drug out of her blood and they've operated on her leg. Thank god she didn't have to lose it.' Mrs Scully said with a weak smile. Skinner nodded and smiled a little.

'That's good news.' He said trying to be as happy as he could, but he faltered and looked away for a moment.

'Sir, I know how you must be feeling, but I am sure that you will find Mulder. May be Dana can remember where they took him.'

'Well let's hope that she remembers.' Skinner said quietly. Mrs Scully nodded.

'I'm worried about him too. I just hope that Dana is going to be all right when she wakes up. She has a tendency to get a little angry and upset about Fox.' She said. Skinner sighed and nodded.

They both stared through the glass and Scully and after a while, slowly, she started to open her eyes.

'Dana!' Her mother cried and ran into the room. Skinner stayed put but stared with happiness and concern.

Scully's eyes flickered open and she slowly moved her head from side to side. Her mother came to her side and took her hand. Scully felt so dizzy, and the lights were hurting her eyes. She moved her eyes over to where her mother was and felt huge tears of relief flow out of them at the sight of her. She felt her mother tighten her grip on her hand. Scully shook with tears and her head swayed heavily with her sight as if all the blood had been drained from it. She heard her mother whisper to her and her heart thumped loudly in her chest. Scully stared up at her with sad, tired eyes. She opened her mouth to speak.

'Mom?.. Mom?' She managed weakly. Scully saw her mother start to cry. 'Mom.. no.. it's ok.' She said weakly. Her mother nodded and stroked Scully's forehead softly.

'I love you so much Dana.' She said sadly. Scully frowned a little with frustration. She tried to lift herself up. 'No Dana not yet. Come on, not yet.' Her mother said trying to keep her down. Scully sighed.

'What.. what happened to my leg..' Scully said suddenly as a huge pang of pain ran down her leg.

'They operated sweety, it's all right its going to be fine.'

'I didn't lose it?'

'No you didn't.' Her mother said with happy tears. Scully took a sigh of relief and nodded slowly. She felt so weak and tired, but she felt the need to do something.

'Mom, please can I have a drink of water?' She said with a raspy tone. Mrs Scully nodded and helped her drink from the glass.

'Thanks.' Scully said weakly and took a long deep breath. She closed her eyes and drifted back into a daze, and suddenly she saw Mulder on the floor of the room, and the men shoving drugs into her, and her body was aching and she was screaming..

'OH GOD!' Scully shouted and jolted up in her bed. Tears streamed down her face.

'Dana! Dana what's wrong!' Her mother said sounding terrified. She moved from a chair by the wall over to Scully's bed. Scully was shaking and she looked at her mother with confusion.

'You.. you were by my bed a minute ago..' She said shakily. Her mother took her hand.

'You fell asleep again Dana, you've been asleep for about four days.' She said. Scully stared at her for a moment with surprise and saw the dark night outside the window.

'Four..' Scully said in a surprised whisper. Rain fell onto the window heavily.

Her mother stroked her hair and frowned with concern. She picked up a tissue and wiped away Scully's tears. 'What's wrong?'

'I.. I had a dream..' Scully said, tears catching in her throat. She slowly made herself sit up a little in bed with help from her mother. 'I.. I saw Mulder..' She said weakly. 'Mom, where's Mulder.' She said urgently. Mrs Scully shook her head sadly and tried to look as hopeful as she could. Scully frowned with anger and looked around the room madly. 'Where's Mulder!' She said loudly.

'Honey, he's not here. They can't find him.' Mrs Scully said softly trying to calm her daughter down. Scully shook her head.

'He's still with them. Mom.. I know where he is!' She said loudly.

'You do? Dana that's great.. but don't try and force your memories sweety..' She said but was cut off with surprise as Skinner entered the room. Scully stared at him and he met her gaze. They stared for a moment in silence then he came towards Scully.

'Sir.' Scully said quietly acknowledging him. Skinner nodded.

'Hello Scully.' He said quietly and gave her a small smile. 'How are you feeling?'

'I'm all right, just a little tired.'

'Good, that's good news.' He said quietly. 'You know what I'm here for Scully.'

'Yes Sir. I know where he is.' She said forcefully. Skinner looked at her with surprise.

'Where?' Skinner said hopefully. Scully sighed and frowned with thought.

'He's in a sort of warehouse, near Edge Street.. I remember coming out of the place when they dumped me on the steps of the headquarters.' She said, trying hard to remember. Her mother looked at her with concern.

'That's great, that's all we need to know. We'll find him.' Skinner said. He took hold of Scully's hand. 'Thank you Scully. I'm really glad you're ok, I need to find Mulder now.'

'Wait! Wait I want to come with you! I know the way.' She said loudly.

'That's completely out of the question.' Her mother said. Scully looked at her.

'Mom, my leg is ok. I know that it's ok, I can walk. I'm sure of it.' Scully said quickly and tried to get out of bed. Skinner looked at her with worry.

'Agent Scully.. I don't think that you should do this..' He said with slight anger. Scully ignored him and put her feet on the ground. She winced a little with pain but slowly and surely she got up and managed to stand on her feet. Skinner tried to help her but she pushed him away and she walked across the room with ease. She looked at both of them.

'Scully, what does you doctor say?' Skinner said with a frown.

'I'm a doctor and I know that I'm ready to go.' She said quietly. Her mother looked at her with worry.

'Dana.. please don't risk it all again..' She said, tears started to run down her face. Scully looked at her with guilt and went over to her mother carefully.

'Mom, please don't cry.. I'll be fine. I have to go and get Mulder.' She said taking her mother into an embrace. 'He would do the same for me.' Scully said softly. Her mother nodded and held her close.

Skinner turned from the room and went down the hall to Scully's doctor. He stood by the reception desk and was ticking something off on a clipboard.

'Sir?' Skinner asked. The doctor turned round and faced him.

'Hello Mr Skinner.' He said with a small smile.

'I have to ask you something. Agent Scully wants to leave now to help with our investigation and I think it is very important to her that you let her go, or we will be forced to do it ourselves.' Skinner said sternly. The doctor stared at him with surprise.

'Well.. she.. she's making good progress and I suppose.. I suppose she will be all right.. I mean if she really has to go.. she will need some medication.. She is a doctor herself yes?'

'Yes Sir.'

'Well, I suppose I am going to have to let her go.' The doctor said. Skinner nodded.

'Thank you very much. You have been so helpful and Mrs Scully, Scully and I are very grateful.' He said kindly. The doctor nodded. 'I'm sorry, but we're the FBI so we do this sort of thing.'

'I'm sure.' The doctor said kindly. 'I hope you find who did this to her.'


	7. Seven

Mulder lay weak on the floor and coughed roughly. He felt his whole body ache and turned over slowly to face the large room where he was now, and the smoking man stood in front of him and smoked a cigarette slowly and threateningly. Mulder frowned with frustration as he watched him and tried to struggle out of the rope which bound his arms. He tried to remember what had happened to Scully, but he couldn't. He could remember her screaming and looking near to death, but when he had woken up she had vanished.

'I can see that you are worrying about something Mulder.' The smoking man said slowly. Mulder frowned.

'Where's Scully.'

'How many times are you going to ask me that Mulder? I have told you already, you needn't worry about her, its you I need now.'

'I can't trust you, I have no idea what you've done to her, but you'd better not have hurt her even more than you already have.' Mulder said weakly. The smoking man put his cigarette out.

'Mulder, would I hurt her? It wasn't me that hurt her..'

'Shut up you lying bastard and get on with whatever you want to do to me.' Mulder interrupted him angrily and took a deep sigh.

The smoking man paused for a while and raised his eyebrows. He went over to the end of the room and as the lights flickered on overhead Mulder realised that he had been there before. There was the huge metal door, and it was closed. The smoking man looked towards him.

'Do you remember what is behind this door agent Mulder?'

'The UFO you bastard.' Mulder grunted. The smoking man nodded.

'No need to abuse me, I have shown you evidence of extraterrestrial live Agent Mulder.' He said slowly and walked over to the wall. Mulder struggled to get free again, but the ropes just got tighter.

'I.. I forgot that it was here. I couldn't remember..' Mulder said weakly.

'I'll show you it again shall I?' The smoking man said. Mulder gasped and looked up to the door. The smoking man pressed a button and there was a huge crash as the door started to open. Mulder stared with wonder and amazement as the door revealed the large white craft which he had seen before. His heart skipped in his chest and he glared at the smoking man.

'You bastard.. why do you keep it a secret from the world! They all deserve to know!' Mulder said fuming. He turned back to the magnificent craft as it shone under the lights above it. The smoking man shook his head.

'Mulder, this kind of news would send the world crazy..'

'Not knowing about it will drive them crazy. It's been driving me crazy for years.' Mulder shouted, tears stinging his eyes. The smoking man nodded.

'Yes Fox, I know that. That is why I am showing you this now.' He said gesturing towards the craft. Mulder sighed and tried to get up but he fell in defeat. He lifted his eyes to the craft again and stared hard. He couldn't believe he was looking at something so wonderful, so creative..

'WHAT ARE YOU DOING!' Mulder shouted.

To his horror, there was a large explosion and fire emerged from the back of the ship. The smoking man looked at what was happening with a calm expression. Mulder's heart skipped a beat and he stared at the smoking man in amazement and wonder. The flames started to catch on the ship and Mulder watched in horror as the ship caught fire. He turned madly to the smoking man and but he didn't look bothered.

'WHAT'S GOING ON! IT'S ON FIRE!' Mulder screamed desperately and tired to edge himself closer to the smoking man.

'Yes Mulder. We are burning it.' The smoking man said turning towards him.

'You son of a..' Mulder shouted, but the smoking man walked towards him and knelt down next to him.

'Mulder, if people knew that I had this, and if they knew about the existence or extra terrestrials, well.. I would surely be put in prison..' The smoking man said, lighting up another cigarette calmly as the huge wall of flames towered up behind him. Mulder's face glowed orange in the light.

'Good.' Mulder chocked out. He stared at the flames and then lowered his head in defeat. The smoking man stared at him.

'It's all right Mulder.' He said in a soft low voice. Mulder gritted his teeth and wanted to hit him and throw him in the flames, but he couldn't move from his position. The smoking man got up and turned towards the flames again. 'Now, of course I can't let anyone know that you have seen this.' He said with a harsh voice. Mulder sighed and looked up at him with surprise.

'What do you mean?'

'I can't have you telling the FBI about this can I Mulder?' The smoking man said turning towards him. Mulder felt his heart race with fear.

'What are you going to do?'

'Well..' He started, but Mulder turned in shock as two men came towards him from both sides. He cried out in anger as they towered towards him then leant down and picked him up roughly. One of the men smiled as he pulled Mulder's ropes tighter. Mulder winced in pain and glared at the man with hatred, fear and emotion.

Skinner looked at Scully across the car. She stared out of the window and sat up straight and alert. She frowned with concentration.

'It's along here Sir. Just along here… I can remember it.' She murmured in concentration. Skinner nodded.

'We've just got a radio in from headquarters, they've identified the warehouse.' He said. Scully turned to him.

'Is it this one I mean?'

'Yes. Well done, good memory.' Skinner said with a tiny smile which was soon gone. Scully nodded and grabbed her seatbelt as the car pulled up outside the warehouse. She reached for the car door quickly and Skinner grabbed her arm. She gasped in surprise and turned to meet his eyes.

'We're the only ones here, the others are back along the street waiting for a signal remember; we have to be slow and careful, but efficient.' He said seriously. Scully nodded.

'I know. I'll get the kit out of the back.' She said, then turned from him and got out the car and went to the boot. Skinner turned off the engine and got out of the car closing the door behind him with caution of his surroundings. He went to the back of the car to meet Scully and checked around him.

'Here.' She said handing him a bullet-proof vest and gun. Skinner took it and put it on over his shirt. Scully rummaged around in the boot a little more and found the two blue FBI jackets. Skinner took one and zipped it up over his vest. Scully did the same and they both put the guns in their holsters. She looked up at him and he looked at her with a reassuring glance.

'Scully.. you have to be prepared for anything..' Skinner said with concern. Scully pushed him away.

'Don't say it. He's alive.' She said with force. Skinner stared at her with surprise. He looked at her tired eyes.

'You're going to be all right aren't you?' He asked. Scully turned to him with a glance which needed no words. Skinner nodded and sighed. 'Right.'

They made their way round the back of the warehouse and found a smashed window. Scully frowned in thought and planned what she was going to do in her head and studied the window. Skinner came up behind her and they agreed to go in. Scully pulled out her gun and held it steadily.

'Wish me luck.' She said in a whisper and pushed herself up to climb into the window pane.

'Get off me! Let me go!'

Mulder's raspy voice soared through the warehouse. He could see the burning spaceship in his memory and it broke his heart. The whole place was going to burn down, he knew it. And he also knew that he would go along with it if he was left here.

The two men ignored his cries and carried him away from the sight quickly and roughly. Mulder tried to break free but it was impossible to get the ropes looser. Mulder turned his head to the flames and looked at cancerman for the last time who he saw was watching him being taken away. He was being taken away from him quickly and after a few seconds he was out of the large room and was plunged into darkness.

The heavy breathing of the men carrying him echoed around the large walls. Mulder closed his eyes and tried to imagine he was somewhere else.. safe in his apartment or in the FBI building, with Scully.. in the office..

'Here you go Agent Mulder.' One of the men said. Mulder stared at the space in front of him and a door was opened into a small room. He stared at the room and it was all musty. There was a small window with bars on it with a small amount of light coming in. Mulder blinked then closed his eyes slowly and took a deep breath. He felt himself falling into the room and the impact of the floor hit his chest strongly, but he was used to the pain now. The wooden behind him slammed and he was left alone again, to burn.

Skinner followed Scully into the building and she went along with her gun held steady. She sighed and checked around her to see if she was safe to go forward. Moving slowly she made her way into the first corridor and heard distant shouting. Scully looked back to Skinner and saw him nod to her to go forward. She came up to the first door and looked at it blankly. It was wooden and old looking, she heard distant footsteps and trying to stay calm she put her hand on the door handle. Skinner came in front of her and walked past her and Scully nodded to tell him it was all right. With one deep breath and turned the handle and tried to open the door. Skinner looked back at Scully when he came to the next door and she nodded for him to open it. He turned the door handle and it opened easily, unlike Scully's. Skinner held out his gun and faced the doorway. The room was quite light so it was easy to see. He made his way in a little then came out again shaking his head. 'Nothing.' He said quietly.

Scully frowned in concentration and studied the door next to her. She tried to open again by pushing against it, but it wouldn't move. She started to move away when she heard a muffled voice coming from the room and she turned her head sharply to the noise and stared. Skinner came up behind her. She moved back from the door, desperate to get in. Skinner understood what she was going to do and watched her prepare. Scully frowned and moved back from the door. With one fast movement she moved towards the door and kicked it down.

'FBI! FREEZE!' She shouted, holding her gun out. Her brow furrowed in deep concentration as she looked around the room. It was dark and musty, and she stared trying to get her eyes to adjust. Suddenly she heard a soft murmur from the corner of the room and her heart caught in her throat. She turned slowly to the direction of the voice, her eyes welling with tears. She lowered her gun slowly in shock.

In a horrified whisper full of emotions she said, 'Mulder?'

Mulder lay on his back and faced the ceiling. He heard the door crash open in the distance and he saw flashes of torch light spin over head of him. He didn't know what it was, he just expected to be picked up again or killed may be. He closed his eyes and took a long breath.

Suddenly he heard people bustling about and he heard footsteps coming towards him. He looked away from the direction of the sound and prepared to be hit… but he wasn't.

Someone was touching him, not roughly and not hurting him, but as if they were trying to tell him something or help him. Mulder frowned in thought as he didn't understand. He heard a distant voice, a soft woman's voice which sounded troubled and upset. He slowly opened his eyes and turned towards the person next to him.

He looked up into the eyes of an angel.

'Mulder?' Scully pleaded. She was desperate for him to answer. Tears threatened to fall as she looked down his body to see it was clearly abused. She looked back to Skinner who was standing near the door making sure no one was coming. He looked at her.

'How is he?'

'I.. I don't know. He's opening his eyes… but I've got no response.' She said desperately. 'Come on Mulder, it's me.. it's ok.' She said softly and cupped his face in her hands.

'Mmm…' Mulder murmured. Scully stared into his eyes and saw that they were staring at her desperately. She felt a tear fall down her cheek and she smiled a little, happy that he had responded.

'Mulder, it's all right.' Scully said softly. He closed his eyes again and she felt panic grow in her stomach. 'Mulder, Mulder!' She shouted. He didn't open his eyes. Scully took a small breath of panic and turned towards Skinner. 'We have to get him out of here, now.'

'Hold that thought.' Skinner said. He was distracted by something down the corridor. Scully frowned in confusion.

'What is it?'

'Stay here, look after Mulder.' He said fiercely, and walked away. Scully opened her mouth to object but nothing came out. She turned back to Mulder in confusion and taking scared worried breaths she held him as tightly as she could, her lip trembling with tears.

Skinner held his gun tight in his hands and backed up against the wall. He started to walk slowly and cautiously. He had seen a guard just then, he was sure of it. And seeing Mulder there nearly dead had made him lose it. He was going to kill that smoking son of bitch once and for all. He'd been messed around too many times, he'd finally lost it and was going to kill him. He couldn't let it go on any longer.

Skinner gritted his teeth as he heard voices and footsteps, they sounded like they were running and the voices were worried and frightened. They were shouting at people, telling them to get out. Skinner turned the corner quickly and held out his gun. He came face to face with the smoking man himself. There was a long silence between them. Skinner clicked his gun into place.

'Well hello Walter.' The smoking man said darkly taking a drag of his cigarette.

'You're a dead man.' Skinner said, eyes blazing.

Scully stroked Mulder's cheek and pleaded him to say something to her.

'Mulder please, say something. Please tell me you're ok. Come on Mulder, wake up.'

Mulder lay quietly and his head lay on one side. She brushed a tear away from her eyes and felt rage burn inside her. She wanted to kill cancer man herself.

'Skinner's gone to find him Mulder, it'll be fine, it'll all be fine.' She said soothingly. Mulder suddenly opened his eyes. Scully let out a surprised gasp.

'Sc.. Scully… no…' He rasped. Scully frowned in concern and lifted his head higher.

'What is it.. it's all right.'

'Scully.. there's… there's a fire… a fire..' He rasped weakly. Scully didn't hear him.

'I can't hear you, it's all right you don't have to say anything.' She said softly, but gasped as he grabbed her arm.

'Scully… there's… there's a fire… you have to… GET OUT.' Mulder said forcefully, then fell back in exhaustion. Scully frowned in horror and turned to the corridor and heard for the first time the screams and shouts of people trying to get out.

'Fire! Get out! Come on!' They shouted. She turned back to Mulder and took frightened breaths.

'Ok, ok Mulder we're going to get out of here.' She said. Mulder grabbed her arm again and she jumped.

'Sk.. Skinner.' He said. Scully's stomach dropped and her brain ran through the possibilities.

'He'll be fine, he told me to look after you, and I'm not going to leave you.' She said forcefully. Mulder shook his head. 'No Mulder, I'm not going to leave you.' She said, tears coating her throat. 'You're going to have to help me here. Come on, help me get you up… come on!' She said forcefully and pulled his arm over her shoulder. With two strong heaves she managed to get him partially standing. 'Come on Mulder, help me, hold onto me.' She said gritting her teeth, he was heavier than she had imagined. Mulder grunted in pain and closed his eyes again. 'Come on Mulder, let's go!' She said pulling him out of the door. There was a loud bang and Scully turned back down the corridor in shock but saw nothing. Her thoughts ran to Skinner and panic pumped through her veins, but she needed to get Mulder out, and soldiered on towards the broken window. She started to smell smoke and it started to sting her eyes, making tears fall heavily. She sniffed and gritted her teeth as she dragged him along. 'Come on Mulder! Help me!' She shouted. Mulder grunted and tried to move his legs more. 'That's better, come on we're nearly there.'

It was getting hotter and the walls started to glow yellow. Scully tired desperately to ignore it and carried on as fast as she could. The smoke was getting heavier and she found herself coughing and turned to look at Mulder and saw he had completely passed out. 'No, come on, please Mulder.' She said with exhaustion. She caught sight of the broken window out of the corner of her eye. She took a deep breath and struggled towards it as fast as she could. She got to it and lifted Mulder slowly down onto it and put him through the hole, he fell softly down onto the ground outside. She was sure that it was only wet grass outside, and it wasn't that high. Just as she was about to climb through after him suddenly she heard a gun clicking into place and sensed someone behind her. Scully's heart skipped a beat and she reached for her gun and pulled it out of the holder. She took a deep breath and frowned in anger. On the count of three she pulled it out and turned around quickly and faced the man behind her.

Their guns pointed at each other's faces and she glared at him with anger.

'Shove off red head.' He grumbled. 'I'll kill you.'

'I don't think you will.' She said angrily, holding her gun ready. She put her finger on the trigger.

'You won't get away with it.

'Who the hell are you? Do you work for the smoking man.. no wait, you know what I don't give a damn.' She said angrily and clicked her gun into place.

'I won't let you save Mulder.' He said forcefully. Scully glared at him.

'Too late.' She said seething.

'Not too late, I'm going to kill you.' He said.

'You won't. You're not fast enough.'

Scully took a deep breath and waited a few seconds until the timing was right, then shot him in the head. In reaction the man shot into the air and hit the ceiling. Plaster fell from the roof and Scully stared at it for a moment, taking deep breaths to calm her down, the cries of men running and shouting filling her ears. Closing her eyes she gathered herself, then made her way out of the window. She fell down onto the soft grass at Mulder's side.

'Come on Mulder.' She said taking him by the arm and lifting him up again. She forced him up and carried him away from the warehouse. There was a large crash and she jolted in fright and looked back quickly to see that one of the doors had been broken down and two figures disguised by smoke came crashing out of it. Scully closed her eyes and tried to concentrate on what she was doing and dragged Mulder towards the car. Her legs and arms were exhausted but she had to get him to the car. When they reached it she grabbed the door and threw it open quickly. Scully shifted Mulder into her arms and lay him down inside the passenger seat as gently as she could. He lay down with eyes closed and his body badly beaten, a large black bruise covered his right eye. Scully sighed and brushed a tear away from her eyes and gathered her breath. She tucked his legs into the car and closed the door. Making her way to the front of the car she grabbed her mobile and punched in 911 calling for backup and medical help. She put the phone down; she closed her eyes and sank into the front seat of the car. Scully looked back at Mulder and sighed heavily, her heart ached with sorrow and with despair she ran her fingers through her hair and coughed softly, and unwillingly she started to sob.

There was a loud cry and she jumped as she recognised the voice to be Skinner's. Scully spun round towards the direction of the cry and shook her tears away. She saw Skinner on the floor being held down by a large man; the broken door she had seen crash open lay on it's side next to them and smoke billowed out of the doorway.

'Skinner!' She cried loudly and looked back at Mulder, then ran towards Skinner. She saw that the man had a crowbar and was holding it to Skinner's neck. Skinner struggled underneath him trying to get him off. While running Scully grabbed her gun and pulled it out and aimed it at the man. She cried out angrily for the man to stop and pointed it at the back of the man and pulled the trigger. It hit him and he fell with a cry onto Skinner.

Scully ran towards Skinner and pulled the man off him with all her strength. Skinner put a hand to his throat and frowned in pain.

'Sir? Sir are you all right?' She asked. Skinner coughed and nodded weakly. Something caught Scully's eyes down at Skinner's chest and saw that he was holding something, his knuckles were turning red as he was holding onto it so hard. Scully leant over him and put a hand on his arm. 'Sir, what are you holding?' She asked. She realised that Skinner was shaking and he wouldn't let it go. Scully looked at it hard and surprise flooded through her as she saw what it was. 'The files… you got them back.' Scully took a sigh of relief and took his hand. 'Sir, it's all right. Give them to me.' She said softly. Skinner took deep rasping breaths, then slowly let Scully take them. Scully took them in her arms and put them inside her vest. She looked behind her as a large crash exploded in the warehouse. She stared at as the roof started to collapse, the flames started to grow and danced in her wide eyes.

'Sir, come on, let's go.' She said, realising the need to get away. The warehouse was collapsing, and the flames were getting stronger. 'Come on, let's go… GET UP!' She shouted, and tugged on him to get up and pulled him up. Skinner nodded weakly as she pulled him up and grabbed onto her arm. 'Come on!' She shouted and they broke into a run. Skinner fell limp in her arms but she carried on pulling him over to the car. When she reached it she opened the door and helped him into the passenger seat and slammed the door closed. She looked back at the warehouse and saw the roof had completely collapsed and there was a crash as a piece of flaming metal flew up from inside into the air. Scully cried out as it came flying towards them. She scrambled with the door and jumped into the car and fumbled with the car keys in the ignition. 'Come on!' She shouted, her hands were shaking. She got it in and revved the car up as quickly as she could and slammed down the accelerator. The car jolted forward and speeded off forwards. There was a huge crash as the metal fell behind them. Skinner jumped and looked back in fright. Scully grabbed the steering wheel with determination and her heart pumped loudly as she speeded through the grass, dodging trees and groups of men running away and onto a small road. She turned right onto it and drove up it quickly. When they were a safe distance away she slammed on the breaks. With shaky hands she opened the car door and stumbled out. She turned and faced the warehouse in the distance. Skinner got out after her and stared. Scully felt her breathing get slower and she tried to gather herself, her tears stinging her eyes, emotions going overdrive.

The flames were huge now, growing more and more, a few trees caught flame. There was a huge line of smoke going into the sky and across the trees and over the distant buildings. Suddenly it happened; the huge explosion blew up into the night sky. Skinner and Scully looked across at each other with wide eyes, catching their breath. They could feel the heat even where they were. Scully lowered her head in exhaustion.

'Scully, we have to keep moving.' Skinner said quietly looking at her with concern. He saw that she was swaying. Scully shook her head.

'No, help… is coming, we have to.. have to wait for them.' She said between breaths, and in exhaustion she felt herself sway. Scully grabbed hold of the car to balance herself but closed her eyes. 'Need.. rest..' She managed to whisper, and collapsed gently down to the floor, her body refusing to work any harder, her back sliding down the side of the car and she fell into luxurious blackness.

Orange and yellow flames and pieces of metal and wood flew out in all directions, the sound of the crash echoed all around the vast open space and the night sky was left with an orange tinge, as if it was crying in pain against the flames.

Part 18

Skinner sat at his desk and stared at the agents across from him. He smiled a little sympathetically. Mulder sat with his face bruised, but a lot better than a week ago. He looked at him with a bored expression. Scully looked at Mulder with concern and bit her lip. Mulder sighed and shifted in his seat, his ankle was heavily bandaged.

'I know what you're thinking. It's very, very, very annoying Mulder.' Scully said softly. Mulder sighed.

'He got away with it. He got away, again.' Mulder said. Skinner grimaced.

'He's left the country. There's nothing we can do.'

'We can't go after him?' Scully asked angrily.

'I can.' Mulder said under his breath.

'Not without me you won't.' Scully said defensively. Skinner held his hands up.

'Agents, neither of you are going to find him. He's not the FBI's responsibility anymore. I'm sorry.'

'Bastard.' Mulder said angrily.

'Well at least he didn't close the X-Files.' Skinner said quietly. Mulder and Scully looked at each other with surprise.

'You mean..' Scully said. Skinner nodded.

'You two are back on the job straight away. Full pay, full attendance.' Skinner said with a small smile, he couldn't hide his happiness. Mulder raised his eyebrows and nodded in approval.

'Full pay huh?'

'Thank you Sir. You helped us.. again.' Said Scully.

'I tried to kill him, but that son of a bitch hit me hard. With a crowbar.' Skinner said angrily. Scully raised her eye brows and sighed.

'Mulder, at least we're all ok.' She said.

'Scully, he showed me a UFO!'

'Mulder, for the last time it was probably a fake.'

'I won't believe that! I won't believe that it was fake. It was too perfect. It was.. amazing.' He said, his voice trailing off. Scully looked down at the floor with despair.

'I'm sorry.'

'Listen you two, you're both alive and we can catch this bastard. At least we got the files back.' Skinner said. Scully smiled.

'Yes, thank you Sir.'

'That's all right. I managed to grab them before a huge man with a crowbar attacked me and pushed me out a door.' Skinner said light heartedly. Mulder looked at him with sympathy.

'Sir, I'm very grateful that you got the files back.'

'That's all right. We'll get him, we will.' Skinner said with determination. 'You two can go now. Why don't you go home and have some rest.' He said. Mulder got up slowly and Scully helped him as he stumbled on his ankle.

Mulder sat at his desk and wrote on a piece of paper with a sullen expression. He looked across at Scully as she stood with her arms folded. Her face was dark and upset.

'You ok Scully?' He asked quietly.

'I'm just so angry. I can't believe what we've been through.' She said with a small smile. 'He got us both.'

'I know, but you came back to save me, even when you'd only been in hospital for a few days.'

'You know you would've done the same for me, I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't survived..' She said, her voice breaking off. Mulder stood up slowly and limped over to her. He put a hand on her chin and lifted her face up to look at him. Scully smiled weakly and put a hand on his arm. She kissed it softly and buried her face in it. Mulder let out a small sigh and pulled her into an embrace.

'Thank god we're both still alive, we can stop him. We will stop him.' Mulder said holding her close. Scully felt tears roll down her cheeks and looked up at him.

'I'm sorry you didn't get to keep your spaceship Mulder.' She said softly. Mulder let out a small laugh.

'Oh you know, it probably was a fake.' Mulder said. Scully laughed and pulled him close again. 'Thank you for saving my life again.' He told her. Scully smiled.

'Thanks for being alive.' She said with a small laugh. She pulled away from him and went to sit down at the desk. She leant against it and ran a hand through her hair.

'I couldn't believe it when you were dumped at my flat, I thought you were dead.'

'I was, nearly. God knows what they pumped into me. I still dream about it, I can't get it out of my head.' She said shaking a little. Mulder sat on the other side of the desk and held her hand.

'Are you going to be all right? Are you sure?' He asked. Scully nodded.

'I'll be fine. It's made me even more determined to get the truth out.' She said softly. Mulder smiled and squeezed her hand.

'That's right partner.' He said with a wink. 'What would I do without you?'

Scully smiled as he sat down on a chair. She opened the desk drawer and pulled out a notepad and took a pen from the stationery holder.

'Well partner, what case are we going to start today?' She asked with a small smile. Mulder shook his head with disbelief and laughed happily.

'Scully, I think we need a holiday.' He said, Scully nodded and let out a laugh.

'I agree!'

THE END

..To be continued.


End file.
